Diesel hits $3.96 per gallon in Phila.

Diesel prices in the philadelphia area are closing in on $4 a gallon. The average rose 3 cents overnight, to $3.96 in southeastern Pennsylvania, the AAA Mid-Atlantic auto club said this morning.

Diesel in South Jersey rose 2 cents per gallon overnight, to $3.69 - up 11 cents in the last week, the auto club said.

Gasoline prices held steady overnight at $3.17 per gallon in Philadelphia and $2.97 in South Jersey.

Crude oil prices, meanwhile, were lower today, after jumping to a trading record near $106 a barrel yesterday, The Associated Press reported.

Light, sweet crude for April delivery fell $1.05 to $104.42 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midday in Europe.