Donald Trump said on Tuesday he backs a ban on US diesel exports, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration was examining the idea. The administration is weighing the step as high prices of the fuel put a crunch on American agriculture and trucking, The Hill reported.
What did the administration say? In remarks the BBC reported from the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, Trump said keeping domestic supplies inside the US could also ease broader gasoline prices. "I've called for that too. I've said let's not send out the diesel. We make a lot of diesel. That could have a little bit of an effect on regular automobile gasoline," he said. Bessent said officials were assessing "whether a full or partial ban would work" without disrupting refinery capabilities.
Who has been pushing for a ban? Some Republican lawmakers have pressed for curbs on diesel exports in recent days, with midterm elections due on 3 November. Representative Ashley Hinson, a Republican running for Senate in Iowa, said on Monday that the state's consumers were "being squeezed and shouldn't have to foot the bill at the pump." Senator Dan Sullivan, speaking in Alaska on Tuesday, urged a "temporary pause of American diesel and exports" to rebuild domestic reserves.
What is driving prices? The national average diesel price topped $6.50 (£4.87) a gallon on Tuesday, a new high in American Automobile Association data, with conflict in the Middle East constraining global oil supplies, the BBC reported. Ukraine's strikes on Russian energy facilities have also knocked out Russian refining capacity. "It is a serious hit on the Russians," Trump said during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday. "It's also a serious hit on the price of diesel." Because Russia ranks among the world's leading diesel suppliers, that lost capacity, combined with Moscow's own export bans, has squeezed global reserves.
What could a ban mean abroad? Restricting exports could offer short-term relief for American drivers but may risk pushing up prices internationally, the BBC reported. The US exports roughly 1.3 million barrels of diesel a day, nearly a quarter of its refining output. Cutting those shipments could put pressure on supplies for Western allies, including the UK and the Netherlands, which have relied on American fuel to cover deficits left by sanctions on Russian energy.
Figures referenced: Donald Trump. — JudgeMarket.
