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(Bloomberg) — Gasoline in California has topped $6 a gallon as the global energy crunch from the Iran war reverberates.
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The average statewide price for regular gasoline rose to $6.01, according to data from the American Automobile Association. That’s the highest since October 2023. No other state has ever surpassed the $6-a-gallon mark. At the outset of the war, the price in the Golden State was $4.64 a gallon.
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Skyrocketing pump prices are a major political risk for President Donald Trump’s White House, especially ahead of the midterm elections. In addition, the gains stand to complicate policy decisions for the Federal Reserve, as officials seek to keep inflation in check while sustaining employment.
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Earlier in April, oil prices briefly cooled as investors weighed the odds for a ceasefire in Iran that could reopen the Strait of Hormuz — the vital waterway through which around a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil travels. Since then, they have rebounded, with Washington signaling that it will maintain its blockade, and US gasoline prices are now at their highest since the war began.
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West Texas Intermediate, the main US crude marker, rallied toward $111 a barrel on Thursday, while Brent, the global benchmark, topped $126.
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Trump has previously predicted fuel prices would come back down if the Strait of Hormuz were to reopen. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said last week that he thought gasoline prices peaked in mid-April.
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In California — the most populous US state — rising gasoline prices are also a problem for Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat widely expected to run for president in 2028. Local diesel has already hit a record above $7 a gallon.
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California’s product supply is more challenging than for most of the rest of the US. No pipelines carry fuels into the state from the Gulf Coast, and the state has also seen two refineries shuttered since October 2025, eliminating roughly 20% of its capacity. Still, gasoline prices in California remain below the peak of $6.438 seen in June 2022.
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