USA · updated 54m ago · 2 min read
Donald Trump Considers Diesel Export Ban to Cut U.S. Gas Prices
Trump is considering a 90-day ban on U.S. diesel exports to curb domestic prices. Major business groups warn the ban would raise fuel costs and be counterproductive.
22 outlets told this the same way.
10 of 11 outlets skipped it: EU warned disruption would negatively impact both sides.
22outlets compared
Trump weighs diesel ban
President Donald Trump said he was considering a ban on U.S. diesel exports to improve gas prices for Americans, and he told reporters, "I've said, 'Let's not send out the diesel.'"
“‘I've said, 'Let's not send out the diesel.'”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington was examining whether an export ban was "feasible in terms of the overall refining capacity" and whether a full or partial ban would work.
Dan Brouillette, the former energy secretary who served in Trump’s Cabinet from 2019 to 2021, warned that the proposal "makes very little economic sense" and said it would backfire.
AAA data put U.S. diesel prices above $6.50 a gallon, while the Canadian Global Affairs Institute’s Joe Calnan said the U.S. exports around 1.5 million barrels per day of diesel and that removing it would raise prices across the board.
The White House official denied a Politico report that the U.S. was preparing a 90-day ban, while U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said no one was considering a total ban.
Business and EU pushback
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Business Roundtable, National Association of Manufacturers, American Petroleum Institute and other business groups warned Trump in a joint letter that an export ban would "lead to less fuel production, tighter supplies and rising costs for American families, farmers and truckers."
Chris Wright told The New York Times that "That's not being discussed," and he said the administration was instead focused on "the most efficient way to get more diesel into the United States of America."
European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill said any disruption from a diesel export ban would risk negatively impacting both sides, and he warned that the EU expected "close partners to consult each other before taking measures that affect shared markets."
French President Emmanuel Macron told a prime-time interview that the decision would be a bad one, saying, "This decision would be a bad one — not just for the rest of the world, but for the U.S. economy as well."
Market risks and timing
Experts said a U.S. diesel export ban would not mean a shortage of diesel in Canada because Canada exported 10.8 billion litres in 2024 and Carol Montreuil said, "We export almost two times more than we import." The Guardian reported that the EU warned the plan would negatively impact both sides, and it quoted Olof Gill saying, "any disruption would risk negatively impacting both sides." POLITICO reported that Macron pressed Trump not to ban diesel exports, and it described a 90-day diesel export ban being considered by the White House.
The Guardian said the potential export ban could be "devastating" for Europe, and it quoted Argus Media’s Josh Michalowski saying, "A US export ban would be devastating for diesel supply in Europe." The EU said it was monitoring the situation and that there was "no specific diesel shortage in the European Union," while the oil coordination group was set to meet again next Tuesday to assess the situation.