This post is part of a series chronicling news coverage of rising gas prices in the United States. See more here.
WISN12 reporter notes how prices have gone up for gasoline and jet fuel, and how grocery prices could be next
Rachel Hirschheimer: Grocery prices “are expected to rise with tightening supplies of fertilizer and fuel”
Published
Video file
Citation
From a May 1, 2026, video posted to the website of WISN12
ZOIE HENRY (WISN): GasBuddy experts blame the Iran war impacts for more of the price hike, but say a refinery issue in Indiana is causing even higher oil prices in the Midwest. Wisconsin gas station owners say they are required to raise prices as wholesale costs rise, making things worse for Wisconsin drivers. Under Wisconsin's minimum markup law, they're required to add at least 9% to the price they pay for gas. In the Milwaukee area, GasBuddy says prices jumped up 8 cents overnight and nearly 50 cents in the last week, and experts say the worst is still to come.
PATRICK DE HAAN (GASBUDDY): Wisconsin, you haven't seen the bulk of the increase yet. I'm afraid that prices could go up to $4.59 to $4.79 here very soon. But we're looking at Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois. All of those states saw prices yesterday jump about 80 cents and then another 20 cents on top of that. They have literally climbed over a dollar a gallon. So be ready for a little bit of sticker shock.
HENRY: GasBuddy says Wisconsin's average this morning is still far from the state record of $5.03 per gallon set back in the summer of 2022.
...
RACHEL HIRSCHHEIMER (WISN): Americans spent $81.3 billion more on gas in March compared to February, when this war started. Now across the US, gas prices are at their highest level since 2022. Now, the national average hit $4.39 a gallon on Friday, according to AAA. That's a 47% increase since the war with Iran began, and that is not the only place Americans are taking a hit.
If you have tried to book a plane ticket recently, you may have noticed the tickets are even more expensive than usual, and that is because they are. The spike in jet fuel costs is certainly driving up ticket prices and baggage fees. Many airlines are also cutting their flight schedules, removing less profitable routes, and also reducing seat capacity.
Now so far, grocery prices have not been affected from the ongoing war in Iran, according to government statistics, but they are expected to rise with tightening supplies of fertilizer and fuel.