One unexpected price surge most Americans dont see is raising the stakes for Trump before November
The fuel most Americans rarely think about is becoming a new hurdle for President Donald Trump’s push to make housing more affordable, as the Iran war raises costs for construction sites.With the midterm elections approaching, the diesel surge underscores the political tension facing Trump and congressional Republicans as they promise to bring down housing costs while war-driven energy prices add new pressure to home construction.Builders are already wrestling with expensive financing, labor, materials and costs tied to regulations and permitting that Republicans have pledged to reduce.Because diesel powers the trucks and heavy equipment used throughout the construction process, higher prices can make it harder to deliver the lower-priced homes needed to ease America’s affordability crunch.AMERICA'S HOUSING MARKET COULD RUN OUT OF SOMETHING MORE IMPORTANT THAN HOMESUnlike gasoline, which drivers notice immediately, diesel's economic impact is often slower but broader, filtering through supply chains before reaching consumers.
(Scott Varley/MediaNews Group/Daily Breeze/Getty Images)Jim Tobin, president and CEO of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), told Fox News Digital that diesel is "critical to construction.""Diesel, which our workers use when they're hauling materials on trucks and moving dirt on sites, has seen a spike, and that has really put a little bit of pressure on home building in the short term here."Unlike gasoline, which is felt most directly by motorists, diesel powers the trucks hauling lumber, concrete, appliances and other supplies to construction sites, as well as the heavy equipment that prepares lots and builds new homes.The national average price of on-highway diesel climbed to $5.65 a gallon this week, up nearly $2.00 from a year ago, according to data compiled by the Energy Information Administration.Diesel's year-over-year increase has been far sharper than gasoline’s, with the national average for regular gas at about ...