Diesel makes the world go around

Diesel prices are skyrocketing as we head into the midterms. Trump’s elective war in the Middle East has slowed oil production and refining. While Trump tries to shift blame to Ukraine’s bombing of Russian diesel refineries, that is dwarfed by the consequences of blocking the Strait of Hormuz and the recent bombing of a Saudi pipeline that had been used to bypass the strait.

“Priyanka Shankar at Al Jazeera reminds us that there is yet another driver of inflation in all this. Refineries produce gasoline, diesel and distillates, and sell the heavy fuel oil (HFO) left over, “bunker fuel,” to shipping companies. But there is a shortage of bunker fuel. Not only has the Netanyahu-Trump war on Iran taken several million barrels of crude oil off the market daily, but the high price of diesel means that refineries are now making another pass at the HFO and turning it into diesel rather than selling it at a lower price for ships. Less supply and stable demand equals higher prices, and there could even be shortages that idle container ships. More than 80% of goods traded globally are transported over the water. 

 

“Things are going to cost more, with negative effects on household purchasing power. Essentially, by launching their foolish war on Iran, Netanyahu and Trump have given pretty much everyone in the world a salary cut. I fear that fertilizer shortages and high fuel prices may well lead to a large number of deaths. There is always food in a famine, people just can’t afford it anymore. With the Trump administration’s weakening of the social safety net at home, and Elon Musk’s wanton destruction of USAID abroad, the likelihood of some people becoming malnourished or even starving because of these developments has increased substantially.”

What is Trump doing about all this? Designing an arch and a ballroom and gilding statuary, while turfing off US diplomacy on a couple of real estate developers. Trump predicts it will all resolve after the midterms. Color me skeptical.


https://www.juancole.com/2026/09/terrified-midterms-spirals.html

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