Topline
President Donald Trump said he has told “people” he supports a ban on diesel exports as the country faces record prices for the fuel used for trucking and agricultural equipment amid the ongoing war with Iran and the Russia-Ukraine war, aligning himself with Republicans largely representing agricultural states hoping to ease prices for farmers.
President Donald Trump meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday.
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Key Facts
When asked about the idea of a diesel export ban Tuesday, Trump said he has “called for that,” telling reporters, “I’ve said let’s not send out the diesel.”
Trump also speculated that such restrictions “could have a little bit of an effect on regular automobile gasoline.
Trump said he called for an export ban to “his people” and was discussing the idea, before throwing the question to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Bessent said the administration was “examining” the idea’s feasibility, including whether a “full or partial ban would work”—although the Cabinet secretary did not offer further details about when the administration could issue such restrictions.
Proponents of a ban point to an increased domestic supply potentially serving to lower prices, but industry experts are skeptical that desired outcome would actually happen.
Big Number
$6.51 per gallon. That’s the average price for diesel in the U.S. as of Tuesday, according to data from GasBuddy.
Key Background
Diesel prices have been rising in recent weeks as Ukraine strikes oil refineries in Russia. The price finally hit an average of $6 per gallon earlier this month and broke records for high prices set in 2022 after Russia first invaded Ukraine, the Associated Press reported. The price spike threatens to extend to other consumer goods like groceries in the months leading up to November’s midterm elections, prompting Republican elected officials to call for export bans to fight the rising prices. Last week, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters he was “open to exploring” an export ban. Other Republicans in Congress have more openly called for an export ban. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said the prices “ARE KILLING FARMERS INCOME” in a post on X, Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, the Republican candidate running to replace retiring Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, called for a ban alongside other measures like suspending gas taxes. “Iowans are being squeezed and shouldn’t have to foot the bill at the pump or the checkout line for the war in Iran,” she wrote in her own post on X. However, Trump administration officials have been lukewarm on the idea in the past. Last week, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told reporters his department would “consider an export ban if we thought that actually might lower prices, but that’s not the case.” However, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told Politico on Monday she had spoken to farmers and ranchers about the prices, and an announcement on “official actions” could come soon.
Contra
GasBuddy analyst Patrick DeHaan predicted a ban could “backfire.” In an analysis he previously published about the idea on Monday, DeHaan noted that the U.S. was not facing a diesel shortage, and the rising price is largely due to global shortages due to the ongoing wars. An export ban could “cut refinery runs and tighten supplies of other fuels, gasoline included,” DeHaan also wrote.
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