No U.S. ban on diesel exports was in place as of Thursday. President Trump has said publicly, however, that he supports halting those exports to bring down record pump prices before the midterm elections, according to Reuters, CNBC (opens in new tab), The Guardian (opens in new tab), and the Washington Examiner (opens in new tab). Trump told reporters on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday that he had pressed for the idea inside his administration, CNBC (opens in new tab) reported.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the White House is examining whether a ban is feasible given U.S. refining capacity, and whether a full or partial restriction would work better, per CNBC (opens in new tab) and Reuters. CNBC (opens in new tab) also cited a Politico report Wednesday, based on unnamed sources, that a 90-day ban was being prepared. The administration has not confirmed that plan in the cited coverage.
Senior officials are not united. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has argued that barring exports would leave refiners with nowhere to store diesel and force them to cut output, putting upward pressure on gasoline and jet fuel prices, the Washington Examiner (opens in new tab) reported; Reuters reported a similar warning from Wright. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said a ban was unlikely to lower prices and could invite retaliation from energy-exporting countries that states such as California depend on, according to Reuters, which reported that the president’s energy officials warn a ban could raise fuel prices in coastal markets. Wright told The New York Times that a total halt to diesel exports is “not being discussed,” according to CNBC (opens in new tab).
The European Commission said Thursday that any disruption to supply would risk harming both sides, The Guardian (opens in new tab) reported. Analysts cited in the coverage estimate the U.S. has supplied roughly a third to half of Europe’s diesel imports this year. Benedict George, head of European products at the commodities data provider Argus, told The Guardian (opens in new tab) that the diesel cargo market had stayed relatively quiet so far as traders weighed how far the White House might go. European pump prices and refining margins have also surged after disruptions to Middle Eastern and Russian refineries tied to ongoing wars.
Major U.S. business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Business Roundtable, National Association of Manufacturers, and American Petroleum Institute, told Trump in a letter sent Wednesday that a ban would reduce fuel production and push prices up rather than down, CNBC (opens in new tab) reported. Diesel averaged $6.51 a gallon nationally Thursday, $2.82 more than a year earlier, according to AAA data cited by CNBC (opens in new tab).
No ban has been ordered. The Event Log treats Trump’s stated support, Bessent’s description of the review, and the EU and business-group responses as confirmed statements. Whether any ban is issued, and in what form, is undecided.