U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright attends a House Energy Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the Trump administration’s fiscal year 2027 budget request for the Department of Energy at the Capitol on April 15, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Nathan Howard | Reuters
Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Sunday that gas prices may not fall below $3 until next year as the U.S. war with Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz continue to wreak havoc on energy markets.
Asked on CNN’s “State of the Union” when prices would return to pre-war levels, Wright said: “I don’t know, it might happen later this year, it might not happen until next year, but prices have probably peaked.” “Certainly, if this conflict is resolved, energy prices will come down.”
Wright added: “Below $3 a gallon, adjusted for inflation, is pretty amazing. It was during the Trump administration, but we haven’t seen it in quite a while, adjusted for inflation. We’ll definitely get back there.”
Gasoline prices have skyrocketed since the US started war with Iran. Since the outbreak of the war, the Iranian government has largely blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route that carries about a fifth of the world’s oil.
As of February 1, the average price of regular unleaded in the United States was $2.90 per gallon, according to GasBuddy. Since the war began on February 28, the price of a gallon of gasoline has soared and now averages about $4.04 a gallon, according to AAA.
The U.S. envoy is scheduled to meet again with the Iranian envoy in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Monday to discuss ways to end the war. oil Prices fell late last week after both the United States and Iran announced the strait was opening to trade.
However, Iran shelled two tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, tempering hopes that the ceasefire between the United States and Iran would last and the strait be fully reopened to trade.
