Macron Warns Trump Against U.S. Diesel Export Ban, Calls It Bad for Global and U.S. Economy
Quick Look
- French President Emmanuel Macron warned U.S.
- President Donald Trump that a proposed 90-day diesel export ban would be a bad decision, harming both the global economy and the U.S. itself, citing France’s efforts to secure alternative energy supplies amid Middle East conflict and rising diesel prices in Europe.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The U.S. is the world’s largest diesel exporter, and Middle East conflict has disrupted global energy trade, prompting the EU to increase diesel imports from the U.S. to offset lost supply via the Strait of Hormuz.
PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday he told U.S. President Donald Trump that a 90-day diesel export ban being considered by the White House was a bad idea.
“I think all the experts around him and all the American refiners can only tell him the same thing,” Macron said during a prime-time interview. “This decision would be a bad one — not just for the rest of the world, but for the U.S. economy as well.”
The United States is currently the world’s largest exporter of diesel, according to ClearView Energy, and removing that supply from global markets would have far-reaching effects given how the conflict in the Middle East has already upended the global energy trade.
“There is a war in the Middle East, and we are paying the price,” Macron said.
The European Union has in recent months purchased more diesel from the U.S. to make up for lost supply that can’t get through the Strait of Hormuz, and shipments from across the Atlantic now make up more than half of all diesel imports to the bloc.
Macron last week announced plans to chair a G7 meeting to look at releasing strategic oil stocks and held talks with the leaders of hydrocarbon exporters to secure supplies from alternative sources.
During Thursday's interview, Macron said France would deploy the military to help secure the Saudi port city of Yanbu, from which more than 5 million barrels of oil are shipped daily, after it came under attack by the Tehran-backed Houthis in Yemen.
The French leader has also tried to lobby Brussels to ease EU rules on the make-up of fuel and on methane emissions to help keep soaring energy prices under control, and his government this week announced it would spend €450 million to extend fuel subsidies enacted in March through the end of the year.
But those moves have so far failed to move the needle, with diesel prices in France and the rest of Europe surging to record highs this week, according to analyses from Agence France-Presse.
France has little fiscal space to further cushion the blow given its anemic growth, stubbornly high budget deficit and massive pile of debt. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said last week the government would propose a €54 billion budget squeeze to contain the deficit.
Ben Munster and Geoffrey Smith contributed to this report.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The U.S. will abandon the 90-day diesel export ban following international pushback.
Likely · Within weeks
France will seek further EU-level coordination on energy security measures.
Likely · Within months
Open Questions
- Will the White House proceed with the 90-day diesel export ban despite Macron’s warning?
- How effective will France’s military deployment to Yanbu be in securing oil shipments?
- Can France sustain its fuel subsidies given its fiscal constraints?
- Will the G7 meeting on strategic oil stocks lead to coordinated action?
