Record $5.85 Diesel Pushes Fuel Surcharges Through Freight Networks

US diesel reached a record national average of $5.85 a gallon, surpassing the prior high of $5.816 set in June 2022, as the six-month conflict with Iran continues to disrupt global fuel flows. Diesel powers most long-haul freight and parcel delivery, so the increase feeds directly into the cost of moving goods.

The arithmetic is unforgiving for carriers. A truck running 125,000 miles a year at 6.5 miles per gallon burns roughly 19,231 gallons. At February prices that was a $72,308 annual fuel bill; at current prices it is about $112,500.

Shippers are passing costs along. Amazon has added a temporary 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge for some third-party sellers, and UPS, FedEx and the US Postal Service each moved earlier in the conflict to attach fees to certain shipments. For UPS, which closed at $100.48 on September 8 and trades well below its $121 fifty-two-week high, surcharge recovery against volume risk is the balance investors are watching.