Answering your questions We talked about gas prices two weeks ago, which led to more questions. Meanwhile, prices have continued to rise. They hit the $4-a-gallon milestone on March 31 and yesterday averaged $4.15, according to AAA. That’s 17 cents higher for a gallon of regular gasoline since the last time we covered this topic. Which brings us back to your follow-up questions: - The United States is the largest oil-exporting country. This means it has abundant oil capacity. So, why is the gas price here going up day after day because of the Iran war?
- Isn’t the U.S. oil-independent, as both President Biden and Trump have touted?
Just last week, President Donald Trump, in an address to the nation, said as much. “We’re now totally independent of the Middle East,” he said, adding, “We don’t need their oil, we don’t need anything they have.” That’s not true. Oil, as my colleague Evan Halper explained earlier, is a global commodity. When I followed up with him, Evan added: “Not all the oil that comes out of the ground in the U.S. is suitable for U.S. refineries. [Some] is pumped specifically with the intention of exporting it elsewhere.” While the U.S. is a net exporter of oil, it still imports about 6 million barrels a day, some of which comes from the Persian Gulf. Plus, it’s not as simple as restricting the oil that the U.S. exports. The shortage is driving up prices, with customers in the U.S. competing with those abroad who were getting oil from the Middle East. And drivers in the U.S. may not see relief anytime soon. In the Middle East, Israel and Hezbollah are still fighting, which is putting a strain on the U.S. ceasefire and negotiations with Iran. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively blocked. Meanwhile, higher gas prices are affecting the rest of the U.S. economy. My colleagues at the Early Brief noted that the high fuel costs are hitting products that have to be shipped by trucks, as well as “fossil-fuel derived goods such as fertilizer for the agriculture sector.” Also: Diesel, which fuels the trains and trucks that bring us our goods, hit $5.68 a gallon yesterday, not far from the record high of $5.81. One last word from Matthew Choi and Dan Merica at the Early Brief: Even during normal geopolitical moments, gas prices usually start going up as the weather warms, with more drivers hitting the road for vacation and EPA regulations requiring gas stations to sell a more expensive, lower-emitting fuel blend in the summer months. Refineries also generally work on repairs in the spring ahead of the high summer demand, further constricting supply this time of year. | | | | What else to know Special thanks this week to Evan Halpern, who was kind enough to answer your questions from vacation. You can follow him on X @evanhalper. And you can (and should!) sign up for the Early Brief newsletter here. Thanks to you for your questions — now, keep ’em coming. If you want to ask us about news you’ve seen in The 7, send them here. We’ll find the right person to answer them for another weekend edition of The 7. Keep reading Each weekend, The 7 team shares our favorite recent Post stories with you.  | Hannah Jewell | Jim Whittaker, the first American to summit Mount Everest, died this week at 97. The story of his historic 1963 ascent is worth a read — it made him a national hero and helped promote mountaineering (and the brand REI) in the U.S.  | Izin Akhabau | Post columnist Monica Hesse says that “Real Housewives” is the reality show that has most influenced Donald Trump. Honestly, her arguments convinced me.  | Jamie Ross | Susan Badger is brilliant name for a dog, and she has an amazing story. A construction crew found her roaming the highway and built her this little hut. She’s now been adopted.  | John Taylor | When I’m on vacation, I like to walk — a lot. So this travel guide to no-car vacations really spoke to me, even though I’ve already walked most of them. Next stop: Key West? Maybe so. | 
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