Energy Secretary Wright says gasoline and diesel prices peaked as Brent holds above $108
Energy Secretary Chris Wright told ABC News on Sunday that gasoline and diesel prices "peaked a few weeks ago," and for jobbers deciding how hard to buy on the rack this week, that is the call to weigh against a Brent benchmark still holding above $108. Those two things point in opposite directions. Wright is talking the pump down while crude tagged $109.99 overnight before pulling back.
The peak call
Wright said both gasoline and diesel peaked, full stop. Take it with the salt it deserves. A sitting Energy Secretary has every reason to tell drivers relief is coming, and the crude tape is not cooperating yet.
Brent briefly hit $109.99 a barrel in overnight trading, a five-month high, then retreated through the Asian session and into Europe. The pullback came on signs of recovering Middle Eastern supply, which offset fresh attacks on energy infrastructure and shipping lanes. For marketers, a Brent that can print $109.99 and still soften in the same session means rack prices stay choppy and your replacement cost is a moving target.
If Wright is right and the supply recovery holds, wholesale could ease in the coming weeks. If the infrastructure attacks keep landing, that peak call ages badly.
Ethanol reallocation
A reallocation plan is on the table that offers relief to ethanol producers and farmers. For blenders and unbranded marketers, reallocated volumes change the math on RIN costs and how much ethanol clears into the pool. Thin details so far, but anything that firms up ethanol demand touches your blended rack price.
Watch for the actual numbers before you reprice anything. A headline about "relief" tells you the direction, not the cents.
Iran terminals empty
Iran's main oil terminals remain empty, per Rigzone. Barrels that normally move out of those terminals are not moving, and that lost export volume is part of why Brent can still spike toward $109.99 even as other Middle Eastern supply recovers. For US operators the connection is straight: tighter global crude supply is upward pressure on the benchmark that sets your wholesale cost, whatever Wright says about the peak.
Empty terminals also mean this is a supply story that could reverse fast or drag on, and neither Wright nor anyone else controls that timing.
What to watch
Whether Brent holds above $108 or the supply recovery pulls it lower, since that sets the ceiling on how fast any pump relief reaches your rack. Watch the ethanol reallocation for hard volume and RIN numbers. And watch whether Iran's terminals start loading again, because that is the swing that could prove Wright's peak call right or wrong inside a few weeks.