Gas Hits $4.25, Diesel $5.64 as Fuel Prices Rise for Sixth Straight Week
Regular gasoline rose to $4.25 per gallon for the week ending April 6, up 46% since January. Diesel hit $5.64, up 63%. The diesel-gasoline premium widened to $1.39 -- the widest since 2022.
Wire / EIA Petroleum Data
The national average price of regular gasoline hit $4.25 per gallon for the week ending April 6, 2026, up from $4.13 the previous week. Diesel reached $5.64. Both fuels have now risen for six consecutive weeks.
The numbers
Fuel
Jan 12 low
Apr 6
Change
% Change
Regular gas
$2.91
$4.25
+$1.34
+46%
Diesel
$3.46
$5.64
+$2.18
+63%
WTI Crude
$57.56/bbl
$94.29/bbl
+$36.73
+64%
The surge was concentrated in March but has not plateaued. Regular gas rose $0.13 in the latest week. Diesel rose $0.24 -- its sharpest single-week increase since the initial March spike.
What's driving it
WTI crude oil went from $57.54 per barrel at the start of January to $94.29 by the end of March. The sharpest move came in early March: crude jumped from $65.87 on February 27 to $78.37 on March 6 -- a $12.50 increase in a single week -- then continued climbing to $96.07 by March 20 before settling slightly.
The crude price move corresponds to escalating tensions around the Strait of Hormuz. Roughly 21% of global petroleum consumption passes through the Strait daily. As of April 7, the situation continues to intensify, with multiple outlets reporting threats of further military action.
Diesel is the tell
Diesel's 63% increase versus gasoline's 46% reflects the fuel's tighter supply dynamics. Diesel inventories were already running below the five-year average entering 2026, leaving less buffer to absorb a crude price shock. Diesel also tracks more directly with crude prices because it requires less refining.
The diesel premium over gasoline widened from $0.53 per gallon in January to $1.39 in the latest week -- the widest gap since the 2022 refining squeeze.
What this means at the pump
A household driving 1,000 miles per month in a vehicle getting 25 miles per gallon is paying roughly $170 per month in fuel at current prices, up from $117 in January. That is an additional $636 per year.
For diesel-dependent industries -- trucking, freight, agriculture, construction -- the impact is larger. A long-haul truck consuming 20,000 gallons per year faces an additional $43,600 in annual fuel costs versus January levels.
These costs flow downstream. The Producer Price Index for trucking tends to follow diesel with a 4-6 week lag. Grocery prices, which depend on refrigerated diesel transport, typically respond within 8-12 weeks. The March fuel spike is now entering the window where it should begin appearing in consumer prices.