US petrol prices dip ahead of midterms, averaging $4.17 a gallon, as voters eye living costs

Petrol prices in the United States have dipped slightly ahead of the midterm elections, but they remain high as the cost of living stays a central issue for voters. The dip comes amid renewed diplomatic efforts to end the war on Iran.

On Monday, the average price of regular petrol was $4.17 per gallon (3.78 litres), according to the American Automobile Association (AAA), which tracks daily petrol prices. That is down 12 cents from this time last week and 23 cents from a month ago.

By comparison, prices were $3.04 a gallon at this time last year, and $2.98 on February 28, the day the US and Israel first struck Iran.

Diesel prices remain high at $6.29 per gallon, although that is down 6 cents from this time last week. Diesel climbed above $6 a gallon for the first time in September before topping out at $6.53.

According to a Financial Times analysis of federal data, the average petrol price of President Donald Trump's second term to date was set to exceed $3.46 a gallon on Monday, surpassing the previous record for a presidential administration set under former President Joe Biden.

Oil prices are also falling. On Monday, oil fell 6 percent as diplomatic efforts to end the US-Israeli war on Iran continued, following in-person talks in Qatar over the weekend.

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said in a post on X that oil markets were down significantly in the morning after Trump signalled he favoured negotiations and not new attacks on Iran, with oil down about 5 percent and wholesale gasoline and diesel pointing to a decline of roughly 16 cents per gallon. He said the national average could fall under $4 a gallon in the next week barring a course change.

Cost-of-living issues remain top of mind for voters as they head to the polls. An AP-NORC poll last month found that a majority of Americans believe addressing cost-of-living issues should be a priority for Congress, including 78 percent of Republicans and 89 percent of Democrats.

White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said that once the conflict comes to an end, gas prices will drop drastically and the Iranian regime will not have a nuclear weapon. She added that, thanks to the work of the US military, more oil is now flowing out of the Persian Gulf than before the Iran conflict began.

On Wall Street, shares of oil and gas giants were trending downward in midday trading: ConocoPhillips was down 3.7 percent, Chevron 2.3 percent and ExxonMobil 3.3 percent. The major US indices more broadly were in positive territory, with the Nasdaq up 0.7 percent, the S&P 500 up 0.6 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1 percent.