Oil prices drop below $100 for the first time in nearly a month

Oil prices dropped sharply on Wednesday, as European Brent crude fell below $100 per barrel for the first time since Oct. 7.

The move translated to a nearly $9 drop, or a more than 8% decline. U.S. crude oil, or WTI, also slipped 8% to about $89.

Relief for consumers may follow. Oil’s fall could bring the national average price of gas down below $4 in the “days ahead,” said Patrick De Haan, analyst at GasBuddy.

Prices moved lower as trading desks and energy experts watched closely for a sign that Tuesday’s midterm election results would pressure President Donald Trump into ending the Iran war without a major escalation. The war sent gasoline and diesel prices skyrocketing, making already-stubborn inflation worse for American consumers, farmers and business owners.

“The next six weeks typically deliver one of the most hostile environments for higher gasoline and diesel prices,” said Tom Kloza, chief energy adviser to Gulf Oil, on social media. “If the US or Iran don’t pursue ‘scorched earth’ policies in the Persian Gulf, we may see considerably lower prices by second half December.”

On Wednesday morning, that average price was $4.12. That’s 39% higher than before the war with Iran started on Feb. 28, which snarled shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.

On social media, Vice President JD Vance said the war is the reason the Republican Party suffered such steep losses in the midterm elections.

“And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there,” said Vance, who could be the GOP’s standard-bearer in the 2028 presidential election.

Trump also said he realized the toll the war took on American consumers.

“I think it’s the gasoline price,” Trump said Tuesday night on Fox News Channel as the first results became clear. “People agree with what I’m doing on Iran, but they really probably weren’t willing to do the short-term consequence of paying more for gasoline, and that, you know, I understand that.”

Oil’s drop over the last three trading sessions has been precipitous. On Friday, it traded as high as $118 per barrel but by midday Wednesday, prices were around $98.

Despite the sharp move lower, the overall price of oil remains higher by 65% compared with the start of the year.

On Tuesday, 59% of voters that went to the ballot box told NBC News in an exit poll that they were “very concerned” with the cost of gas and diesel fuel, echoing concerns that consumers have voiced for months.

But diesel fuel prices have economists far more concerned.

U.S. diesel futures also tumbled on Wednesday. As of midday, prices declined by nearly 7%, to their lowest level since the end of August. That likely means that more relief is coming for prices at the pump.

As the fuel that powers transportation services for goods, such as groceries, around the country any jump in prices could quickly ripple across the economy through higher prices on store shelves.