Energy & Environment

Energy secretary predicts energy prices may rise, hit peak in ‘next few weeks’

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by Rachel Frazin - 04/14/26 10:58 AM ET

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by Rachel Frazin - 04/14/26 10:58 AM ET

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Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Monday that he expects gasoline prices to peak in the next few weeks.

“We’re going to see energy prices high and maybe even rising until we get… meaningful ship traffic through the Straits of Hormuz,” Wright said during Semafor’s World Economy event in Washington, D.C. “That’ll probably hit the peak oil price at that time. That’s probably sometime in the next few weeks.”

Asked if prices will increase before they go lower, Wright said, “It depends how the conflict goes, but it’s a very real possibility.”

Over the weekend, President Trump declined to directly answer whether oil prices would tick down ahead of the midterm elections.

“I mean, I think so. It could be, it could be, or the same, or maybe a little bit higher, but it should be around the same,” he told Fox News on Sunday.

The Trump administration’s shifting message on oil and gas prices comes as the war with Iran has entered its seventh week.

The conflict has sent oil and gasoline prices spiking, with Iran effectively halting ships from traveling through the Strait of Hormuz. This strait, off Iran’s coast, is a key chokepoint in the global oil trade, as about 20 percent of the world’s oil typically flows through it on a given day.

Gasoline prices typically rise in the summer — though not to this extent — as more people travel, increasing demand. Prices usually fall in autumn when this traffic ceases.

The elevated prices could hurt Republican chances of keeping onto this majority in Capitol HIll, with the November midterms quickly approaches.

As of Tuesday, the average U.S. gasoline price was about $4.12 per gallon, up more than $1 since the start of the war.

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