U.S. Gasoline Prices Climb Back Above $4 on Hormuz Risk

[Financial News, New York = Lee Byung-chul]As military clashes between the United States and Iran drag on, the average price of gasoline in the United States has once again risen above $4 per gallon. Disruptions to crude oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, combined with summer travel demand, are pushing both global oil prices and gasoline prices higher.
The American Automobile Association (AAA) said on the 20th, local time, that the national average gasoline price had edged above $4 per gallon. That means gasoline has once again crossed the $4 mark, which is widely seen as a psychological threshold.
According to AAA, about half of all U.S. states still have average gasoline prices below $4 per gallon. Indiana had the lowest price at $3.35 per gallon, while California was the highest at $5.49. Washington State and Hawaii also had average prices above $5 per gallon.
At the start of this year, before the war, the average gasoline price was $2.98 per gallon. It surged after the conflict between the United States and Iran sharply reduced crude oil supplies moving through the Strait of Hormuz. In early May, it even jumped to $4.56 per gallon, the highest level in four years.
Prices later fell back below $4 after the United States and Iran signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on June 14 to halt hostilities. But after Iran resumed attacks on ships leaving the Strait of Hormuz and the United States moved to blockade Iranian ports, prices turned upward again. Over the past week, the average gasoline price has risen by about 13 cents.
Global oil prices are also surging again. Brent Crude Oil briefly topped $90 per barrel during trading on the day, crossing that level for the first time since early June. Over the past week, Brent Crude Oil has risen about 16%, while West Texas Intermediate crude oil (WTI), the U.S. benchmark, has climbed by about $12 per barrel this month.
The sharp rise in gasoline prices is also a burden for President Donald Trump ahead of the midterm election in November.
White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said, "If the U.S. military weakens the Iranian regime's ability to attack commercial vessels and disrupt energy transport through the Strait of Hormuz, oil and gasoline prices will return to prewar levels." She added, "President Trump remains committed to easing household burdens by expanding U.S. energy production and cutting costs."

[email protected] Lee Byung-chul Reporter