President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with executives from major U.S. fuel makers and distributors, including Marathon Petroleum, Delek US Holdings, Chevron, PBF Energy, and Valero Energy, on September 1. The primary focus of this meeting is the persistently high gasoline and diesel prices, which have become a significant political liability for the administration ahead of midterm elections. National regular gasoline averaged $4.08 a gallon on August 29, while diesel was near $5.60, representing about a $1 increase since the Iran war began on February 28. These prices are making August the most expensive on record for that month, and the average price of diesel in the U.S. was $5.62 a gallon on Wednesday, a 53% increase from a year earlier, nearing its record high of $5.82 a gallon from 2022.
The backdrop to these surging prices is the ongoing war with Iran, which has disrupted global oil flows, including through the Strait of Hormuz, causing crude oil prices to climb around 20% to about $86 a barrel. U.S. refiners have been operating near maximum capacity, with utilization rates around 97.4% in late August, to fill global supply gaps caused by war-related damage in the Middle East and Russia. However, this high demand, coupled with limited refining capacity expansion (the last U.S. refinery was built in 1977), has led to significant profit margins for refiners; for example, Valero Energy and Marathon Petroleum saw their profit margins on converting crude to fuel roughly double year-over-year in the second quarter of 2026. Marathon, Phillips 66, and Valero reported combined profits of $12.6 billion in the second quarter of 2026.
The rising fuel costs are severely impacting consumers and businesses, with farmers and truckers particularly hard hit. Farmers are facing double the usual fuel expenses, and independent truck operators struggle to pass on higher costs to customers, eroding their profit margins. While large logistics companies can mostly pass on costs, smaller businesses are feeling the squeeze. The administration has already taken steps like releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, adjusting the Jones Act, and modifying biofuel blending requirements, but these have provided only incremental relief. The September 1 meeting is expected to discuss supply issues, capacity expansion, gas tax suspensions, and regulatory reforms, as the administration seeks to alleviate price pressures and improve Trump's slipping approval ratings.
