It's never been more expensive in the U.S. to fill up the tank and take one last summer trip over the Labor Day weekend.
asserted
It → fill → weekend
The average price of regular gas was $4.14 a gallon heading into the holiday and a penny higher on Labor Day itself, nearly a dollar higher than last year and well above the Labor Day weekend record of $3.82 from 2012, according to the AAA motor club.
uncertain
price → head → club
Gas prices have never topped $4 per gallon on Labor Day, AAA noted.
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AAA → top → Day
The national average for regular gas prices is still well below the record of $5.02 a gallon set in June 2022.
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average → set → June
At the same time, diesel
, then was another nickel higher on Monday, AAA reported.
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AAA → report → Monday
Trucks and other freight delivery systems use a lot of diesel, and that increased transportation cost is being passed on to consumers, whether at the grocery store or through package delivery services.
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cost → use → services
Prices shot up after
and haven't settled down since.
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Prices → shoot → ?
Crude oil traffic through the key Strait of Hormuz has plunged, and ."Everything points to the Iran War and the Strait of Hormuz," said Tom Seng, a professor of energy finance at Texas Christian University.
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Seng → plunge → University
Energy Secretary Chris Wright offered few specifics on when the nation's drivers might see relief at the gas pump, acknowledging that prices are higher now than Labor Day 2025.
uncertain
prices → offer → Day
"Yes, they're higher today, but we're doing everything we can to push them down," Wright said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."
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Wright → do → Week
Gas prices typically drop as the summer driving season ends and refineries turn to making a less expensive winter blend.
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refineries → drop → blend
But Seng said there are other factors this year even beyond the volatile situation in the Middle East that make future prices unpredictable.
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prices → say → East
U.S. refineries are working at 98% capacity, many in the unusually harsh Texas heat.
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refineries → work → heat
If there are problems there or a hurricane knocks some systems offline, prices will struggle to drop.
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prices → be → systems
Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian refineries are squeezing diesel supplies.
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attacks → squeeze → supplies
Chinese refiners are seeing declining outputs as well, said Matthew Metzgar, a clinical professor of economics at UNC Charlotte.
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Metzgar → see → Charlotte
"There's just less gasoline coming out of those refineries," Metzgar said.
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Metzgar → be → refineries
Wright, the energy secretary, said the Trump administration was taking steps to increase production and that the markets forecast lower prices in coming months.
"If you look at the futures prices, if you wanted to buy today in bulk gasoline for two months out in November, it's about 35 cents cheaper than it is today.
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it → say → November
So the marketplace thinks gasoline prices are going to move meaningfully lower," he said.
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he → think → ?
Geopolitically, though, there is little a driver can do to lower gas prices.
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driver → be → prices
Still, using price apps can help save a little money, especially on long trips where gas by the interstate could be 10 to 15 cents per gallon more expensive than at stations a short drive down the road, Metzgar said.
uncertain
Metzgar → use → road
from its post-pandemic highs, high fuel costs are squeezing consumers and businesses alike.
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costs → squeeze → consumers
Since the start of the Iran war, higher gas and diesel prices have cost Americans more than $741 per household, according to a
uncertain
prices → cost → a
The Aporia
