Rising diesel prices in the United States raise fears of rising inflation

Truck drivers in the United States pay an average of $5.85 per gallon nationwide, an increase of nearly 60% compared to the same period last year, when the price of diesel was $3.71 per gallon. In California, the price of diesel is $7.70 per gallon, an increase of nearly two dollars above the national average, according to CNBC.

John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital, pointed out that diesel prices directly contribute to high inflation rates.

“You can do all the virtual shopping you want, but in the end all your purchases will arrive at your home via a diesel truck, so the price is inevitable,” Kilduff told CNBC's Morning Call.

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For his part, Bob McNally, founder of Rapidan Energy, said that diesel is the fuel most closely linked and intertwined in the joints of the economy, even more than gasoline.

In a statement to CNBC's Squawk on the Stree program on August 17, McNally explained that diesel is used "in transportation, heating fuel, agriculture, as well as for industrial purposes."

“It is the most important fuel to monitor due to its significant macroeconomic impact,” McNally added.

This price increase comes at a time when Ukraine is launching intense attacks on Russian refineries, forcing Moscow to ban diesel exports. Other refineries also stopped working in the Middle East as a result of the attacks launched by Iran on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and on the energy infrastructure in the region.

In this context, Gary Simons, Chief Operating Officer of the American refining company Valero, stated during an earnings call on July 30 that the conflicts caused the shutdown of refineries with a production capacity of about 5 million barrels per day.

For his part, Brian Mandel, executive vice president of marketing at Phillips 66, said during the company’s earnings call on August 5: “The fundamentals of the refining market are witnessing great tightness, and this tightness is exacerbated by the existing problems in Russia and the Middle East.”

Lippo pointed out that the Russian ban on diesel exports affects supplies amounting to about 800,000 barrels per day, while the disturbances in the Strait of Hormuz affected about 1.2 million barrels per day.

He also pointed out that the Houthis, Iran's allies, caused the Saudi Jazan refinery to stop working, which produces about 200,000 barrels per day.

“Diesel is a hidden tax, as the high cost of fuel is passed on to the consumer in the form of increased prices for goods and services transported by truck and rail,” Lebo said.

In late August, the US Energy Information Administration said that crude oil inventories in the United States rose slightly over the past week, while gasoline and oil derivatives inventories declined.

Crude inventories at the distribution center in Cushing, Oklahoma, also rose by about 1.2 million barrels during the week.