U.S. gas prices approached their highest level of the year Friday, after the national average rose another 3 cents overnight. The nationwide average price is currently $4.46 per gallon. Friday’s price sits just 10 cents below the highest level hit earlier this year, on May 21, when the national average was $4.56 per gallon.
Gas prices are also once again within striking distance of their all-time highest level of $5.01, which was hit in June 2022, after Russia invaded Ukraine. Already, at least six states have average gas prices above $5. California has the highest in the nation, at $6.11 per gallon.
A handful of other states, such as Michigan, Utah, and Illinois were on the cusp of hitting $5 Friday. Gas prices overall have risen 50% nationwide since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. At the same time, the price of diesel has been registering new daily all-time highs since it first breached $6 per gallon on Sept. 11.
The national average diesel price was $6.44 on Friday, after rising five cents overnight. The price-per-gallon of the commercial fuel has risen 71% since the start of the Iran war. Rising diesel prices can translate into higher costs for consumers by raising the wholesale cost of getting goods to retailers and grocery stores.
The global shipping, rail and trucking industries all rely on diesel. For months, the Trump administration has claimed that fuel prices will drop sharply as soon as the war is over. But more recently, the president has begun conceding that it may take much longer than that for global energy costs to come back down.
With less than 8 weeks left before the U.S. midterm elections, frustration over prices is building among consumers. The University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey recently dropped sharply on inflation concerns. And on some parts of social media, Americans — even some who claim to have supported Trump — are sharing their frustration with high gas prices.
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