Gas prices fall below $4 national average

Key Points:

• Gas prices in the U.S. have fallen below $4 per gallon for the first time since mid-April, with a 9.3-cent drop over the past week and a 52.4-cent decrease compared to a month ago, following President Trump's announcement of a deal with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
• The decline in gas prices is linked to a sharp drop in oil prices, with Brent crude falling nearly 12% over the past week to about $83 per barrel, the lowest since early March, as markets reacted to the potential reopening of the strait.
• The deal between the U.S. and Iran includes the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade, though full normalization of oil flows is expected to take time due to mine clearance and varying risk tolerances among shipping crews.
• Analysts caution that while oil prices have dropped, gas prices may not immediately follow due to current oil prices still being significantly higher than pre-war levels, and it may take months after the strait's full reopening for the global energy crisis to ease.
• Strait traffic has already resumed at a limited scale, with about $7 million worth of oil traveling daily, and normal traffic levels are expected to return within approximately two weeks.