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Diesel futures top $5 a gallon for first time since 2022
Higher futures prices for diesel typically ripple through to the pump and stoke inflation
A driver refuels a tractor-trailer with diesel fuel at a truck stop in Tracy, Calif. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg)
Key Takeaways:
- U.S. diesel futures topped $5 a gallon Sept. 10 in New York for the first time since April 2022 amid global supply disruptions.
- Diesel prices surged as Middle East tensions, reduced Strait of Hormuz flows and Russia's export ban tightened supplies and depleted stockpiles.
- The market is scrambling for diesel as peak demand season begins, increasing pressure on U.S. inventories and raising inflation concerns.
U.S. diesel futures surged above $5 a gallon for the first time since April 2022, the latest sign of a deepening global fuel squeeze as wars disrupt supplies and rapidly erode fuel stockpiles around the world.
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Diesel in New York traded as high as $5.03 a gallon on Sept. 10 as escalating Middle East tensions threaten further disruptions through the vital Strait of Hormuz while Ukrainian drone attacks have forced Moscow to ban exports. Futures prices are now at the equivalent of about $210 a barrel.
Higher futures prices for diesel, seen as the workhorse of the global economy, typically ripple through to the pump and stoke inflation, creating headaches for central banks and President Donald Trump ahead of the midterm elections. Diesel is the fuel that powers delivery trucks, machinery and farm equipment.
The national average for retail diesel prices have already soared to $5.98 a gallon as of Sept. 9, according to the American Automobile Association — the highest on record.
In California, prices averaged $7.91 a gallon, inching toward the $8 mark. At five stations in the state, prices are listed at $9.999 a gallon, according to GasBuddy’s Head of Petroleum Analysis Patrick De Haan. That’s the highest price most stations are physically capable of listing on their signage.
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Still, the strain of record-high diesel prices will also be felt in states like Maine — where the highest proportion of households in the country warm their homes with heating oil — and agricultural states like Kansas and Iowa, where diesel fuels farm equipment.
MAXXED OUT at $9.999!! GasBuddy data showing 5 stations in California that have hit the limit and are selling diesel at the dispensers highest possible price: $9.999/gal
— Patrick De Haan (@GasBuddyGuy) September 10, 2026
Oil product exports through the Strait of Hormuz are recovering slowly, but they remain well below pre-war levels. And with exports from Russia banned through the end of September, the world is scrambling to secure diesel fuel just as peak demand season kicks off. That has left the U.S. as the supplier of last resort, drawing down stockpiles to their lowest ever seasonal levels heading into September.
