U.S. Rack ULSD Prices Extend Rally for Fourth Straight Day

DAVENPORT, FL (DTN) — Wholesale rack prices for gasoline and diesel across the United States opened higher Thursday, extending the upward trend for a fourth consecutive session as supply concerns linked to escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East continued to support refined products markets.

Nationwide ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) rack prices were at $3.3996 gallon, up 13.99cts from Wednesday’s $3.2597 gallon, according to DTN data.

Meanwhile, conventional unleaded gasoline rack prices were heard at an average of $2.5913 gallon, an increase of 1.81cts compared to Wednesday’s national average of $2.5732 gallon.

On gasoline racks, PADD 5 posted the largest increase, rising 5.97cts to $3.1325 gallon, followed by PADD 3, up 3.76cts to $2.2022 gallon. PADD 1 climbed 3.02cts to $2.2499 gallon, while PADD 2 increased 1.76cts to $2.1126 gallon and PADD 4 rose 1.19cts to $2.2460 gallon, the same data showed.

Compared to the national average of $2.5913 gallon, all regions traded at a discount except for PADD 5, which stood at a 54.12cts premium to the U.S. average. The widest discount was seen in PADD 2, at 47.87cts below the national benchmark, followed by PADD 3 at a 38.91cts discount, PADD 4 at 34.53cts below, and PADD 1 at 34.14cts below.

ULSD racks also moved higher across all five PADDs, with the sharpest increase seen in PADD 3, where ULSD rose 20.09cts to $3.3687 gallon, followed by PADD 1, up 17.09cts to $3.5472 gallon. PADD 5 climbed 14.16cts to $3.8643 gallon, while PADD 2 and PADD 4 increased 9.91cts and 5.69cts, respectively.

Relative to the national ULSD rack average of $3.3996 gallon, PADD 5 held the strongest premium at 46.47cts above the U.S. average, followed by PADD 1 at a 14.76cts premium. PADDs 3, 2 and 4 were at 3.09cts, 18.69cts and 39.45cts below the national average, in that order.

The front-month NYMEX ULSD futures contract for April delivery rose by $0.1530 to $3.4468 gallon, while the April NYMEX RBOB contract increased by $0.0826 to $2.5979 gallon, as futures markets continued to move higher during early Thursday trading.