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ArchiveEconomy

Diesel benchmark posts record 96.2-cent weekly jump to $4.859 as Hormuz traffic collapses

The DOE/EIA retail diesel average published March 10, 2026, rose by the largest amount in the series' 32-year history.

By Transport News Staff · Added to the archive

The U.S. average retail diesel price used to set most fuel surcharges rose 96.2 cents a gallon to $4.859 in data the Energy Information Administration published on March 10, 2026. FreightWaves reported that it was the biggest one-week increase since the series began in March 1994.

A record move

The previous record was a 74.5-cent increase on March 7, 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine, according to FreightWaves' John Kingston.

The March 2026 jump capped eight straight weekly increases that together added $1.40 a gallon. The benchmark had not been that high since Dec. 5, 2022, when it stood at $4.967.

FleetOwner reported that every region rose sharply:

  • Gulf Coast: up $1.03 to $4.627
  • West Coast: up $1.02 to $5.556, and up 95 cents to $5.088 excluding California
  • East Coast: up 98 cents to $4.901
  • Midwest: up 91 cents to $4.801
  • Rocky Mountain: up 66 cents to $4.397

The Strait of Hormuz

The increase came as the war with Iran restricted tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. FreightWaves cited an S&P Global Energy factbox showing only four ships transited the strait on March 8, compared with 91 on Feb. 28. It also cited a Goldman Sachs report that traffic was running at 10% of normal.

S&P Global Energy reported that about 17 million barrels a day of crude and products had failed to sail out of the Persian Gulf the week before. That was partly because Iraq and Kuwait shut in production as storage filled, according to FreightWaves.

Futures markets swung wildly. Ultra-low sulfur diesel on the CME traded as high as $4.4715 a gallon in the session that opened Sunday evening, March 8, then settled at $3.5866 on March 9. It fell further on the morning of March 10, FreightWaves reported.

What it meant for carriers

The DOE/EIA average is the price used to set most fuel surcharges, FreightWaves noted.

FleetOwner reported that AAA's national diesel average was $4.780, $1.16 higher than a year earlier. It noted that fuel costs had risen above 2025 levels, which could require fleets to adjust budgets and route planning.

FreightWaves said S&P Global Energy's reporting did not offer much hope that restricted supplies would ease soon. It noted that shut-in oil wells can take weeks or months to return to normal output.

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