Gas prices fall below $4 per gallon for the first time since July

The average nationwide price for regular gasoline on Tuesday fell below $4 per gallon for the first time since July 20, according to data from AAA.The drop comes as oil prices have plunged, with President Donald Trump repeatedly playing down the prospect of a renewed war with Iran, and pushing for progress between Russia and Ukraine in new trilateral talks.Still, gas prices remain elevated by more than 30% since the war with Iran started on February 28, and around 40% since the beginning of the year.The drop in pump prices came after oil futures plunged 13% last week.For the global crude oil benchmark Brent, it was its biggest one-week percentage drop since April 2020, when the Covid pandemic began shutting down the global economy and demand for oil rapidly declined.

Oil prices slid by another 5% on Monday, to their lowest point since August 31.And on Tuesday they briefly fell below $90 a barrel.The slide in oil prices started after Trump told NBC News last week that he did not plan to attack Iran.

The fall continued after Democratic candidates put up commanding vote totals in Tuesday’s midterm elections, which some called a “blue tsunami.” Markets quickly began betting that Democratic control of the House and Senate would put a cap on some of Trump’s most economically-disruptive policies, such as the Iran war.“Given the Democrats’ control of Congress, there will likely be more scrutiny over the war, while funding it could become more difficult,” said ING commodities strategists in a note.“The outcome of the elections means there could be more pushback from the Republican Party, too.”“The reason we lost is the war,” Vice President JD Vance wrote in a post on social media in the wake of the results on Wednesday morning.

Vance added that “any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there.”For traders, Vance’s acknowledgment of the unpopularity of the war bolstered the case for lower oil prices.But on Friday, Trump was...