Trump Backs Diesel Export Ban as Pump Prices Hit Record $6.50

US President Donald Trump has said he would back proposals to halt American diesel exports, aiming to ease record prices for drivers ahead of November's mid-term elections.

Speaking on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, Trump suggested that keeping domestic supplies inside the US could also bring down broader petrol prices.

"I've called for that too. I've said let's not send out the diesel. We make a lot of diesel. That could have a little bit of an effect on regular automobile gasoline," he said.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed officials were assessing "whether a full or partial ban would work" without disrupting refinery capabilities.

The national average diesel price surpassed $6.50 (£4.87) a gallon on Tuesday, according to American Automobile Association data — a new high.

The political clock is ticking. Mid-term elections fall on 3 November, and several Republicans are pressing the administration to restrict diesel exports to ease the financial strain on voters. Representative Ashley Hinson, a Republican running for Senate in Iowa, said on Monday that the state's consumers were "being squeezed and shouldn't have to foot the bill at the pump."

In Alaska on Tuesday, Senator Dan Sullivan similarly urged a "temporary pause of American diesel and exports" to rebuild domestic reserves.

Geopolitics is tightening the market

Two conflicts are squeezing global supply. The war in the Middle East has constrained global oil supplies, pushing up pump prices. Ukraine's intensified drone attacks on Russian energy facilities have knocked out a significant share of the country's refining capacity.

Trump addressed the Ukrainian strikes directly during a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday. "It is a serious hit on the Russians," he said. "It's also a serious hit on the price of diesel."

Kyiv has stepped up attacks on Russian processing plants in recent months to choke off the Kremlin's primary source of war funding. Trump confirmed he would discuss the strikes with Zelensky alongside broader efforts to negotiate an end to the conflict. "I think it's going to happen," he said of those talks.

Russia ranks among the world's leading diesel suppliers. Reduced refining capacity there — combined with Moscow's own strict export bans — has severely squeezed global reserves.

The trade-off for exporters

The arithmetic explains Washington's dilemma. The US exports roughly 1.3 million barrels of diesel per day, nearly a quarter of its total refining output.

Cutting those shipments could offer short-term relief for American drivers. But it risks pushing prices higher internationally and putting pressure on supplies for Western allies. The UK and the Netherlands, in particular, have relied on American fuel to cover deficits left by sanctions on Russian energy.

A full or partial ban, then, would hand a domestic political win to Trump and vulnerable Republicans while exporting the pain to buyers in Europe. How Bessent's officials weigh refinery continuity against allied supply lines will determine whether the ban moves from campaign rhetoric to policy.