Updated: March 31, 2026 / 4:02 AM EDT / CBS News
The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline climbed above $4 on Tuesday for the first time in more than three years, AAA reported. The average was $4.018 a gallon, up from $3.990 on Monday.
Gas prices have jumped since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, increasing by more than $1 per gallon over the past month, AAA data shows. The rise reflects market jitters tied to the conflict and uncertainty about supply from the Middle East.
President Trump has said the war might end soon, and Pakistan indicated it would host talks between the U.S. and Iran in the “coming days,” developments that could signal progress. At the same time, the U.S. has increased special operations forces in the region, and President Trump has renewed threats to strike Iranian power plants and other civilian infrastructure if talks fail. The administration also said it presented a 15-point peace proposal to Iran last week.
Against that volatile backdrop, pump prices finally pushed past the $4 mark after hovering just under it for several days.
The last time the U.S. average exceeded $4 was August 2022. Prices briefly topped $5 a gallon in June 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine drove crude oil prices higher.
“It’s not the shock of $5, but motorists are really going to start to see those digits go up on the dollar price on the pump relatively quickly,” Patrick De Haan, petroleum expert at GasBuddy, told CBS News. De Haan noted that, since 2009, gasoline has been above $4 only 157 days — all in 2022.
A CBS News poll released March 22 found rising gas prices are increasing concerns about the U.S. economy: 90% of respondents expect the Iran war to push up oil and gas prices in the short term, and 58% said fuel costs are likely to rise over the long term. Locally, 85% of respondents reported higher prices in their area. The poll surveyed 3,335 U.S. adults from March 17-20.
Diesel prices also climbed, reaching $5.454 a gallon Tuesday versus $5.416 on Monday. Diesel is widely used in farming, construction and in trucks, trains and ships that move goods across the country; higher diesel costs can translate into broader transportation and shipping price increases.
Diane Swonk, chief economist at KPMG, told CBS News that as transportation costs rise, companies could pass some of those higher expenses on to consumers.
The Trump administration has taken steps intended to ease prices, including releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and loosening certain regulatory requirements that affect fuel supply. Analysts told CBS News those moves can help but are unlikely to fully close the supply gap or significantly lower pump prices while geopolitical risks remain.
Edited by Alain Sherter and Brian Dakss