Americans Face Higher Gas Prices Amid Ongoing Iran Conflict

President Donald Trump stated on Thursday that Americans should anticipate higher gas prices "for a little while" as a consequence of the ongoing conflict with Iran, without specifying a timeline. He noted that the war has had less impact on stocks and oil prices than expected, remarking, "I have to be honest, the stock market is at an all-time high right now. I thought it would have been down 20, 25 percent."

Brent oil futures rose about 3% on Thursday to close at $105.07 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate futures advanced around 3% to close at $95.85. Brent crude has surged to nearly $120 a barrel from about $72 a barrel the day before the war started.

A recent CNBC All-America Economic survey indicates that nearly 80% of Americans have changed their spending habits due to rising gas prices. The nationwide survey of 1,000 people, conducted from April 15 to 19, has a margin of error of 3.1%.

Since the U.S. and Israel first attacked Iran on February 28, the Trump administration has repeatedly said it expected the war to last around four to six weeks. However, with the conflict now nearing the end of its second month, Trump has adjusted the timeline, stating, "I took the country out militarily. In the first four weeks, I took it out militarily. Now what we're doing is sitting back and seeing what deal" can be reached. He added, "And if they don't want to make a deal, then I'll finish it up militarily with the other 25% of the targets."

The president also asserted that temporarily higher prices will be rewarded with an eventual deal that keeps Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, with which they would "try and blow up one of our cities or blow up the entire Middle East."

Gas prices have surged more than 30% to top $4 per gallon since the war began, according to AAA. A majority of survey respondents also said they expect the higher prices to last at least six months.