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January 31, 2001 11:54 AM, EST

Rising demand triggered by fears of refinery production cuts and the cost of natural gas pushed the retail price of diesel fuel up by nearly two pennies a gallon last week, wiping out three weeks of decline.

And while a growing number of analysts still expect prices to fall somewhat in the near future, the energy crisis in California loomed over the market with a threat that could render all predictions meaningless.

The national average price, as reported by the Energy Information Administration on Jan. 22, was $1.528 per gallon, the highest mark since Dec. 18, when the price stood at $1.545.

However, analysts like Roger Simon, president of Simons Petroleum, a fuel supplier based in Oklahoma City, continued last week to predict that the price will moderate downward in the near future — although Simons said the situation in California bears watching.

For the full story, see the Jan. 29 print edition of Transport Topics. .