Anywhere you look, prices are headed up.
Ground beef can run over $7 a pound, depending on the fat content and the grocer. Regular unleaded gas is anywhere from $3.89 to $4.02 a gallon. And diesel is anywhere from $5.89 to $6.10 a gallon locally.
Kansas Second District Congressman Derek Schmidt says the recent spike in diesel prices can cause widespread price increases in other consumer spending categories.
Schmidt says the US war with Iran is the most obvious cause, with Iran’s ongoing blockage of the Strait of Hormuz near the United Arab Emirates now coupled with the more recent and lesser-publicized work of Iran-backed Houthi rebels to destroy Saudi Arabian pipelines and to block the Bab al-Mandab Strait between Djibouti and Yemen. But he also says a lack of expansion in domestic oil refining capabilities, coupled with recent destruction of refining capacity in the Middle East and Russia due to wars overseas, isn’t helping.
Schmidt says there is work to increase domestic refining options. Refinery plans are in place for a new facility in south Texas, which would be the first major facility since the 1970s. Schmidt also says price control by the federal government is not an option, nor should it be.
Schmidt also says it will be helpful if the Trump administration gave Congress a better sense of “the end game” with the Iran war, adding the problems in the Middle East won’t stop once the war ends. He expects additional attacks by Houthi rebels on Saudi infrastructure. He also says the end of the Russia-Ukraine war will also help the overall fuel situation.
