There’s “little doubt” Americans will see record-high gas prices if President Donald Trump follows through on his threats to Iran, according to an industry expert.
Trump threatened in a Tuesday morning Truth Social post that a “whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again,” if Iran does not agree to a deal with the U.S. by his Tuesday evening deadline.
Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said the president’s latest threat could send fuel prices soaring.
“Absolutely shocking escalation by Trump this morning- jarring to say the least- if he follows through, there’s little doubt that fuel prices will hit modern records,” De Haan wrote on X.
De Haan provided more details in a follow-up post: “WTI crude up $2.60/bbl as Trump warns Iran with new escalations, national average price of gasoline rises to $4.14/gal, while diesel climbs to $5.62/gal, some ~20 cents from a new record high.”
“Whether or not we see these numbers surge will depend on actions today,” he wrote.
A few hours later, De Haan also warned that the “real-time price of oil has surged, highlighting how acute the current supply [situation] has become.”
The national average price of gas rose to $4.14 per gallon on Tuesday, according to the American Automobile Association. This comes just days after the national average price surpassed $4 per gallon for the first time since 2022.
Rising gas prices are Americans’ “top concern” amid the Iran war, according to a Pew Research Center survey released Tuesday. Other major concerns included a potential U.S. ground operation in Iran and terror attacks on American soil.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump remains “committed to fully unleashing American energy dominance, lowering costs, and putting more money back in the pockets of hardworking American families.”
“When Operation Epic Fury is complete, gas prices will plummet back to the multi-year lows American drivers enjoyed before these short-term disruptions,” she said in a statement provided to The Independent.
The president has given Iran a deadline of Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern time to reach a deal with the U.S. and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
On Easter Sunday, the president wrote on Truth Social: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran.”
He added: “There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F***in’ Strait, you crazy b*****ds, or you’ll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH!”
A day later, when asked whether he’s concerned that his threats to strike power plants and bridges in Iran could amount to war crimes, Trump told reporters: “Not at all.”
“You know the war crime? The war crime is allowing Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” he added.
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