The trucking industry is being impacted by skyrocketing diesel fuel prices, and experts say that increased cost will get passed on to the consumer.The average cost of diesel fuel in California is $5.83 a gallon. That is up 14 cents from Monday, and 76 cents from last week.”All fuel prices just going up and up and up, and I think it’s kind of outrageous,” said Roland Meza, a truck driver.KCRA 3 spoke to Sacramento State University finance professor Sanjay Varshney about the ripple effects this could have.”Literally, there’s no part of the economy in my opinion that can escape these higher prices for both gas and diesel at the pump,” Varshney said.He expects people will be paying higher prices for everything, from the food they buy at the grocery store to packages they order online. This is all following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which sparked the United States’ ban on the import of Russian oil.”Less than 10% of our imports were coming from Russia, but the reality is that oil prices are still trading in a global market,” he said.Varshney said this could go on for several weeks to months.”Prices go up almost instantaneously when you see a major crisis, but they take a very long time to come back down,” Varshney said. In order for prices to come back down, he said, there has to be some assurance that there will be increased production of oil.”The U.S. is the largest producer of oil, so we’re hoping that we will be the folks who can reassure the world that, yes, we have our backs but we have your backs too. That hasn’t happened so far,” Varshney said.
The trucking industry is being impacted by skyrocketing diesel fuel prices, and experts say that increased cost will get passed on to the consumer.
The average cost of diesel fuel in California is $5.83 a gallon. That is up 14 cents from Monday, and 76 cents from last week.
“All fuel prices just going up and up and up, and I think it’s kind of outrageous,” said Roland Meza, a truck driver.
KCRA 3 spoke to Sacramento State University finance professor Sanjay Varshney about the ripple effects this could have.
“Literally, there’s no part of the economy in my opinion that can escape these higher prices for both gas and diesel at the pump,” Varshney said.
He expects people will be paying higher prices for everything, from the food they buy at the grocery store to packages they order online. This is all following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which sparked the United States’ ban on the import of Russian oil.
“Less than 10% of our imports were coming from Russia, but the reality is that oil prices are still trading in a global market,” he said.
Varshney said this could go on for several weeks to months.
“Prices go up almost instantaneously when you see a major crisis, but they take a very long time to come back down,” Varshney said.
In order for prices to come back down, he said, there has to be some assurance that there will be increased production of oil.
“The U.S. is the largest producer of oil, so we’re hoping that we will be the folks who can reassure the world that, yes, we have our backs but we have your backs too. That hasn’t happened so far,” Varshney said.
