Rising diesel costs add to triple threat of supply chain charges

Diesel fuel and heating oil are two very similar types of petroleum products called distillates. Distillate inventories typically build through summer as heating oil usage fades, causing prices to fall seasonally. But this summer, global demand is exceeding supply and prices are soaring. That’s partially because diesel users now have one more thing to worry about: the Olympics.

China’s imports for the first four months of 2008 were reported to be roughly eight times higher than 2007 l