Gas pumps flirt with $4 as Iran conflict jacks up NYC prices

New Yorkers faced a gas-pump shock as regular unleaded averaged $3.58 a gallon in NYC—up from $2.86 three weeks earlier, with some stations flirting with $4—as the Iran-related disruption of the Strait of Hormuz pushed prices higher. The national average rose 26 cents in a week to $3.68, about a 70-cent jump since the war began. President Biden ordered the release of 172 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve—the largest in U.S. history—to ease shortages, though it will cover only roughly eight days of demand. With crude around $100 a barrel and cleaner, summer-blend gasoline more expensive to produce, the surge may linger for a while.