Diesel Prices Rise at Sharpest Pace in Three Months

Diesel prices across the United States increased at the sharpest pace in nearly three months in the week ending Feb. 6, rising 8.7 cents as hopes that Greece will secure a second bailout package pushed oil prices to a month-high.

The average $3.943 left the price up 40.9 cents from the same period a year ago, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The ramp-up in price was the briskest since the week ending Nov. 14, when prices rose 10 cents.

The rise was the steepest in the Midwest, where prices rose 10.6 cents to $3.857. The East and West coasts joined California in seeing prices at or above the $4 a gallon mark.

Crude oil for March delivery rose $2.24 to $100.91 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price jump came after Greek lawmakers approved an austerity package that is needed to secure a second European Union bailout package for the ailing country.

-- Contact Mark Szakonyi at mszakonyi@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter @Szakonyi_JOC