Energy Secretary Chris Wright has a new prediction for when Americans could start to see a decrease in gas prices, after costs have soared since President Donald Trump’s war with Iran began more than six weeks ago.
Last month, the energy secretary told NBC News there’s a “good chance” gas prices could start to fall by this summer. But, in an interview with the Semafor World Economy summit in Washington, D.C., Wright admitted that would be an “aggressive timeframe.”
It’s possible prices could even rise further before dropping, he explained.
“In the very long term, definitely, this will reset prices down. But we’re going to see energy prices, you know, high and maybe even rising, until we get the ships, meaningful ship traffic, through the Straits of Hormuz. That'll probably hit the peak oil price at that time. That's probably sometime in the next few weeks,” Wright said.
“So you think it'll go higher before it goes lower?” Semafor’s White House correspondent Shelby Talcott asked.
“It depends how the conflict goes, but it's a very real possibility,” he replied. “But once the conflict ends, and energy starts flowing again, you’ll start to see downward pressure. But it will take some time .... the longer the conflict goes, the longer the rebound is.”
Meanwhile, Trump expects gas and oil prices to be the same “or maybe a little bit higher” through the midterm elections in November, he told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo on Sunday.
The national average gas price hit $4.118 per gallon Tuesday, according to AAA motor club. This comes after the national average surpassed $4 for the first time since 2022 about two weeks ago.
The U.S. and Iran failed to reach a deal after holding peace talks in Pakistan over the weekend. U.S. Central Command then announced plans to implement a “blockade of all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports,” which went into effect Monday morning.
Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said gas prices are expected to increase this week.
“The move toward a full blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is compounding global supply concerns and risks further disrupting flows, which pushed oil prices sharply higher in Sunday night trading,” De Haan said in a statement shared on his Substack.
“As a result, gasoline prices are likely to jump again this week, with diesel expected to follow, until there is a meaningful restoration of shipping through the Strait,” he added.
