Retail Fuel Prices Remain Steady

By CnAgri2012-08-06 19:41:28 Print

Retail fuel prices remained steady this week with the Iowa average unleaded retail gasoline price down two cents, ending the week at $3.47 and the Iowa retail diesel price up two cents, closing at $3.74.

The price of global crude oil dropped this week on the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) by $.44 per barrel over last week, closing at $88.06.

Brent crude oil rose in price this week, finishing at $105.93 per barrel on Tuesday's close, up $2.36 from the previous week.

One year ago WTI crude sold for $93.79 and Brent crude was at $116.37.

As of Tuesday, the price of regular unleaded gasoline averaged $3.47 across Iowa according to AAA. This is $.02 lower as compared to last week and down $.19 from one year ago. The national average on Tuesday was $3.52, up $.03 from last week's price.

Retail diesel fuel prices in Iowa were up $.02 on the Tuesday report with a statewide average of $3.74. One year ago diesel prices averaged $3.92 in Iowa. The current Iowa diesel average is $.04 per gallon lower than the national average of $3.78.

Wholesale ethanol prices rose this week by $.03, closing at $2.63. The price of Mid-Grade Blend in Iowa (10% ethanol) closed at $3.39 per gallon, down $.02 from last week's price and down $.19 from one year ago.

Natural Gas prices in Iowa rose $.06 from last week's report, ending the week at $3.22 / MMbtu.