Commentary: Trump's diesel deal with Putin benefits no one except Putin

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

See more from the L.A.Times in Google Search.

Set us as preferred Sensitive, as he should be, to Americans’ resentment of higher prices on staples in the run-up to the midterm elections, President Trump on Oct.9 unveiled what he called “a great announcement on Russian energy,” namely a deal to import nearly 5 million tons of Russian diesel fuel “within a short period of time.” Consequently, he posted on his social media platform, diesel prices in the U.S.

and across the world would be “COMING DOWN, IN RECORD NUMBERS, AND FAST!” (Capital letters in the original.)How has that worked out? For anyone whose daily commute takes them past local gas stations with placards stating their prices, the answer will be no surprise.The week before his announcement, the average diesel price in the U.S.

was $6.20 per gallon.At the beginning of last week, the average was $6.35.

4.8 million tonnes of diesel sounds large and would impress a naive audience.— Energy consultant Robert McCulloughNo one disputes that higher diesel prices are a drag on the economy.Diesel is a crucial input to manufacturing, agriculture and transportation, though its direct impact on consumers is obscure compared with the effect of auto fuel.

“Cars run on gas, the economy runs on diesel,” Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s, told CNBC early in October, citing a familiar energy business chestnut.Nor is there much doubt about what has caused the spike in diesel prices.Trump has blamed Ukraine, which has wreaked havoc on Russian refineries since the Russian incursion into Ukraine.

But the spike really dates from the start of Trump’s Iran war, which has strangled crude shipments through the Middle Eastern Strait of Hormuz.Commentary on economics and more from a Pulitzer Prize winner.

By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, which include arbitration and a class action waiv...