Diesel Dips Further; Oil Slips As Lending Tightens

Following last week's first dip in almost a month, diesel prices continued to fall this week, with a loss of 3.7 cents to a national average of $2.833 Monday

, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

On Dec. 28, diesel saw its first boost in eight weeks, and gained 15.3 cents before slipping 0.9 cents last week. This week's average is about 56.5 cents higher than the average during the same week last year, when it was at $2.268.

New England was the only region where diesel broke $3, landing at an average of $3.055. The Central Atlantic saw the next highest prices, at $2.986 for the week. The lowest prices were found in the Midwest and Gulf Coast regions, where prices averaged $2.79 and $2.80, respectively.

Gasoline prices were down 3.4 cents this week to a national average of $2.705. This was about 86.7 cents higher than the same week last year, when prices averaged $1.838.

Meanwhile, crude oil traded lower than last week, falling Tuesday on fears that bank lending in China could tighten, according to Dow Jones. This could cause oil demand to see slower than expected growth. Crude oil lost 55 cents Tuesday, landing at $74.71 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, Dow Jones reports.