By AAMER MADHANI, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that oil prices that have surged because of the Iran war likely won’t come down until after U.S. midterm elections.
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Oil prices jumped more than 3% today, pushing international Brent crude past the $100 threshold for the first time since July as salvos between the U.S. and Iran escalated.
“Right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward,” Trump said. “I think it’s going to take a little bit longer than the midterm.”
Trump, in an exchange with reporters before traveling to Dallas for the midterm Republican convention, added that he believes Iran will finally relent after the pivotal elections are held in the U.S.
“I think the war’s going to end immediately after the election because they can’t hold out any longer,” Trump said.
The president at the outset of the war said it would last a matter of weeks. The conflict is now in its seventh month.
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U.S. benchmark crude gained 2.4%, pushing the price to $95.25 a barrel, and U.S. gasoline prices rose sharply overnight.
The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline ticked up 7 cents overnight t o hit $4.22, now more than a dollar above what it cost at this point last year, according to AAA.
Diesel prices, which can have an outsize impact on consumers because it is used in shipping and production, hit an all-time high Friday and have continued to climb since. The average price per gallon reached $5.94 overnight and is now 9 cents higher than it was on Friday.
Jet fuel has become so expensive that U.S. and international carriers have cut flights while raising fares and fees.
Markets reacted after the U.S. military reported striking five Iranian tankers in response to attempted missile attacks on a Navy warship and after attacks by an Iranian-backed Houthi rebel group ignited fires at oil facilities in Saudi Arabia.
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AP writer Cathy Bussewitz contributed reporting.