Trucking News · Nationwide · October 28, 2026

GasBuddy Analyst: Wholesale Diesel Swung as Much as 80 Cents a Gallon in Minutes This Spring, and Truckers Feel the Lag

By Big Rig Daily Staff

Update, 4:53 a.m. PT Oct. 28, 2026: Added the date of the federal diesel figures (Oct. 26, released Oct. 27) and checked the regional prices against the EIA table.

Truckers have watched diesel climb for months, and a GasBuddy analyst says the swings have been far faster than most people realize. At times this spring, wholesale diesel moved so quickly that filling a fuel tanker at 5:55 instead of 6:05 could cost 50 to 80 cents a gallon more, according to FreightWaves, which reported on remarks by GasBuddy petroleum analyst Patrick De Haan at its F3 event. That 50 to 80 cent range is FreightWaves' paraphrase of De Haan, and it refers to the wholesale (rack) price at a terminal, not the price at the pump.

Why diesel and gasoline have split

De Haan said diesel has passed its 2022 record of $5.81 a gallon, touched about $6.50 a few weeks before the event and has eased to about $6.35. Gasoline is still roughly 70 cents below its own 2022 high. In 2022 both fuels set records together. This time they have moved apart.

His explanation, as FreightWaves reported it, is lost refining capacity rather than a shortage of oil. Heavier crude yields more diesel, and the countries at the center of this year's disruptions are heavy-crude producers. De Haan also pointed to Russia, which produces about 10% of the world's diesel, and to Ukrainian drone attacks that have cut Russian refining and exports.

How wholesale swings reach the pump

The wholesale rack price historically reset once a day, around 5 or 6 p.m. De Haan said that in March and April it sometimes moved during the day. Retail stations tend to lag by one to three days on the way up and stay "sticky" on the way down, he said. He also said the spread between regional markets can run 40 to 60 cents a gallon.

Where the fuel surcharge falls short

FreightWaves noted that most fuel surcharge programs are pegged to the Department of Energy's weekly national average on-highway diesel price. In its own analysis, which is not a De Haan quote, FreightWaves argued that a weekly number cannot keep pace with intraday swings, so the gap between what a truck pays at the island and what the surcharge returns can come out of a carrier's margin.

The latest federal numbers

The U.S. Energy Information Administration's weekly report, with prices for Oct. 26 and released Oct. 27, showed the national average for diesel rising to $6.352 a gallon from $6.276 the week before, according to The Trucker and the EIA table. That is more than $2.60 higher than a year ago.

• Lower Atlantic: up 15 cents, from $5.740 to $5.890.
• Midwest: up nearly 13 cents, from $6.352 to $6.480. The Midwest's prior-week price happens to match this week's national average, and both figures match EIA's table.
• California: down, from $8.242 to $8.155, the largest decrease. Five regions reported decreases, all in single digits.

Quick facts

• Wholesale swing: 50 to 80 cents a gallon within minutes at times this spring (rack price, FreightWaves' paraphrase).
• Retail lag: one to three days on the way up, per De Haan.
• EIA national average: $6.352 a gallon, up from $6.276.
• Not a pump-price figure: the 80 cent swing applies to wholesale only.

Big Rig Daily has also covered what $6 diesel costs a truck each day, the first tanker of Russian diesel heading to New York and California port truckers facing $8 diesel. To estimate your own costs, try the truck fuel cost calculator.

A question for readers

Has your fuel surcharge kept up with what you are really paying at the pump this fall?

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