President Trump has directed the Justice Department to open an investigation into alleged gas price gouging.
“The big Oil Companies are not dropping their price at the pump commensurate with the sharply lower prices they are paying for Oil,” he wrote on Truth Social. “Those prices are dropping like a rock! In other words, customers are being ‘gouged.’ I have instructed the DOJ to immediately start looking into this. Gasoline prices better start going down a lot faster than what I’m seeing!”
The American Automobile Association (AAA) said that pump prices have decreased since May 22. “But uncertainty remains regarding the fragile peace agreement between the U.S. and Iran, and whether normal shipping traffic will resume in the Strait of Hormuz,” the organization said in a statement. “The declining pump prices come as Oregonians get ready to travel for Independence Day. AAA expects a slight uptick over last year’s travel volume, even though pump prices will be at four-year highs for the holiday. For the week, the national average for regular gasoline loses 12 cents to $3.93 a gallon.”
Energy Secretary Chris Wright told ABC News’ “This Week” that oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz are “already back to normal.”
“I’m long out of the business of predicting oil or gasoline prices, but they will continue to head down. Flows of oil and natural gas through the straits have already returned to normal, and they will continue that way whatever happens with the negotiations with the Iranians,” Wright said. “We’ve got growing American production, surging production in Venezuela. We’ve got cooperation with all the other energy producers of the world. So, I think Americans can expect continued declines in energy prices.”
