US fuel prices fall: Saturday brought good news for common people, farmers and traders who are facing inflation in America. The average price of diesel in the country fell below $6 per gallon for the first time in two months. The national average retail diesel price on Saturday was $5.998 per gallon, according to data from fuel price tracker Gas-Buddy. The drop in fuel prices, which have been at record levels for a long time, is the result of a slowdown in seasonal demand along with easing global tensions. Not just diesel, this month petrol (gasoline) prices also fell below $4 per gallon for the first time since August 10.
All inflation records were broken in September
America’s fuel market has seen tremendous growth in the last few months. Oil supplies were badly affected by the ongoing war between the US and Israel with Iran. Apart from this, Ukraine continued to attack Russian refineries, which halted production. Which had a direct impact on the price. On September 3, diesel reached $5,820 per gallon, breaking the record set during the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022. After this, on September 10, diesel crossed $6. On September 22, it touched a new historical record of $6.519 per gallon. The situation was worst in California. Due to limited refinery capacity and strict fuel regulations there, diesel prices briefly exceeded $10 a gallon.
Expensive diesel steals power from Trump’s party
High diesel prices have greatly increased transportation and freight costs. This led to an overall rise in inflation, which broke the backs of common consumers, farmers and traders. The direct impact of this inflation was seen in the American mid-term elections held this month. Rising fuel prices became a major election issue. Because of this upset, the Democratic Party wrested control of both houses of Congress from President Donald Trump’s Republican Party.
However, the Trump administration took several steps to control prices. The government temporarily removed the federal tax on red diesel (a fuel for agricultural and industrial use). Restrictions on Russian fuel were eased. In addition, an $8 billion aid program was also launched to relieve farmers from expensive fuel during the fall harvest. But all these government measures proved insufficient in view of supply concerns related to the Iran war.
How are the prices coming down suddenly?
Now the market condition is changing. Diesel prices are directly linked to crude oil. Brent crude futures have seen a steep decline of 18.5 percent in the past two weeks. According to Gas-Buddy’s head of petroleum analysis, Patrick De Haan, people drive less during the fall season, which automatically reduces demand. Also, the hurricane season is winding down, reducing the risk of work stoppages at Gulf Coast refineries. Patrick also said that the maintenance work of the refineries is almost over by November. With this, the pace of production is on track. Due to this reason, diesel and petrol prices are falling in America.
