U.S. Gas, Diesel Prices Climb as Iran War Strains Energy Markets

According to CNBC, U.S. consumers are facing higher fuel costs as the Iran war intensifies strain on energy markets, with the national average gasoline price at $4.06 a gallon on Wednesday, up 4.4% from $3.89 a week earlier, according to AAA. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said diesel jumped nearly 34 cents last week to $5.13 a gallon, its biggest weekly rise since the first week of the war in March. The article said U.S. refineries are running at 96.1% of capacity, gasoline inventories have not been replenished after early-war drawdowns, and stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, have been at tank-bottom since early June. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve has fallen to 311 million barrels, its lowest level since March 1983. Taylor Rogers, a White House spokeswoman, said oil and gas prices will fall back to pre-conflict levels as the U.S. military weakens Iran's ability to attack commercial vessels and disrupt energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.