Accessibility helpSkip to navigationSkip to main contentSkip to footer Discover how the midterms will shape policy, markets and the global economy with expert FT analysis. Discover how the midterms will shape policy, markets and the global economy with expert FT analysis. Petrol prices set to hit record high under Trump on eve of US elections Average fuel costs during president’s second term pass Biden-era levels as affordability issues dominate Tuesday’s midterm polls The price of diesel has risen more than 70% since Donald Trump returned to office in January last year© Zak Bennett/Bloomberg Your guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the world Petrol prices since Donald Trump returned to office are poised to set a record high for a US presidential administration just a day before Americans vote in midterm elections dominated by the rising cost of living.
An FT analysis of federal data shows that the average price of a gallon of petrol during Trump’s second term will top $3.46 a gallon on November 2, beating the previous average high set under Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden. The US president’s unwelcome record comes as fuel costs — which have surged since he launched his war against Iran in February — have emerged as a major liability for Republicans ahead of this week’s vote. Instead, the war has sent prices markedly higher.
Petrol costs have surged more than a third since Trump returned to office in January last year, sitting at $4.17 on Sunday, according to the AAA. They remain below the daily peak of $5.02 under Biden, however, which was reached after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Diesel has risen more than 70 per cent during Trump’s second presidency and now stands at $6.30 a gallon, having reached a record of $6.53 in September.
That has pushed up inflation and created an electoral liability for the president. The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index rose at an annual rate of 3.6 per cent in September, versus 2.6 per cent before Trump took office. Polls suggest frustrated voters will lash out at the president’s party this week, with House and Senate races in states that were previously solidly Republican coming down to the wire.
A recent FT survey found 56 per cent of voters claimed to be financially worse off under Trump. The war has caused widespread damage to refineries and other energy infrastructure in the Middle East, exacerbating the supply strains from Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries and pushing up global fuel prices. The US president has defended the price rise as a side effect of a war he argues was necessary to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.
He has said prices will plummet once the conflict ends. A White House official said that, when adjusted for inflation, prices were higher under Biden. Diesel — a key input for agriculture and industry — has been a particular problem for the White House in recent months, as Republicans in the country’s farming heartlands come under acute pressure from voters.
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