Local media warn audiences that gas prices will “take time” to come down once the conflict with Iran is resolved

While local news reports vary on how long high gas prices will persist, experts have warned that even if the war ended today, the “worst energy crisis ever faced by the world” that has come as a result of the war could keep prices elevated for months to come. GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis, Patrick De Haan, told FactCheck that “for pre-war prices to show up, it could take beyond a year.” By reporting expert analysis instead of simply repeating Trump’s claim, local media outlets (still a widely trusted form of news) are helping to inoculate their audiences against misinformation around gas prices. 

• KSTP 5 Eyewitness News in Minnesota visited an oil refinery in the state: “Take it from the people who make this stuff. These prices at the pumps will be with us for quite a while.” A representative for the refinery explained: “I mean, the bottom line is, if the strait opens up, you know, tomorrow, no one has a clear line of sight into what else has happened up and down the value chain that has to be brought back online, so that can take take some time for the market to truly stabilize.” [YouTube, KSTP 5, 6/4/26]

• In Connecticut, Eyewitness News 3 reported: “Experts say even if a deal is reached and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz returns to normal, lower gas prices would still take time because global oil supplies would still need weeks to recover.” [WFSB, 6/3/26] 

• WWLP-22 News in Massachusetts: “Now, if there is a deal and the strait reopens, we’ll see gas prices climb down gradually.” [YouTube, WWLP-22 News, 6/1/26] 

• On WAVY TV 10, which serves the Hampton Roads area and northeastern North Carolina, Patrick De Haan argued that once the Strait of Hormuz is open, it could “take into 2027, maybe even now into late 2027, for gas prices to get back” to pre-war levels. According to De Haan, “Prices will keep going up until the strait reopens, and then as soon as it does, prices will slowly start to decline. But it may take into 2027, maybe even now into late 2027, for gas prices to get back to those, you know, mid-to-upper-$2-a-gallon prices.” [YouTube, WAVY TV 10, 5/28/26] 

• Asked about the argument that high costs are temporary and will decline once the strait is reopened, Fuel Ox CEO Rand Taylor told Wisconsin radio station 620 WTMJ: “It’s going to take months to get things back to normal.” Taylor explained, “The issue is that even after it's open, it's going to take months to get things back to normal. OK? So, you're going — so, it's not going to happen overnight. Any change that happens is not going to happen overnight. But in the meantime, you know, folks, prices are going to stay high, and there's not much any of us can do about it.” [YouTube, WTMJ, 5/28/26]

• Fox23 News Tulsa anchor: “The U.S. Department of Commerce predicts even if the conflict in Iran ends this summer, the price of gas and jet fuel might not come down until mid- to late 2027.” [YouTube, Fox23 News Tulsa, 5/27/26] 

• KREM 2 News of Spokane, Washington, reported: “Amid recent optimism that a deal to end the war could be close, analysts warn getting more normal oil, gas, and jet fuel prices will take time.” It aired a clip from CNN News Central to explain why: “You have to move the ships, evacuate the ships that are trapped in the Persian Gulf. You have to restart the facilities that have been shuttered. All that is in the weeks-to-months time frame. And then from there you've got to think about repairing damaged facilities.” [YouTube, KREM2 News, 5/27/26]

• A representative of AAA told CBS New York that “prices still would be significantly above where we were when the conflict started,” even if the war ended today. “Even if the war were to stop immediately, we still have a lot of damage and destruction to oil and natural gas facilities around the Middle East, such that about 8 to 10 million barrels of daily production has been what's called shut in, has been lost. Demand continues to be what it was. So when demand is high and supply gets lower, price goes up,” said Robert Sinclair Jr., senior manager at AAA Northeast. He added: “Americans are seeking some sort of relief as far as prices are concerned. Probably an end to the war would be the biggest thing. But even if that were to happen, prices still would be significantly above where we were when the conflict started.” [YouTube, CBS New York, 5/13/26] 

• Denver7 reporter: “If the conflict resolves in the Strait of Hormuz, you can expect prices to fall, but they will fall slowly.” [YouTube, Denver7, 5/20/26]

• A Louisiana State University economy expert told Shreveport station KSLA News 12: “If the straits open tomorrow you’re probably looking at, you know, two weeks to a month, if not more, before we start seeing any kind of real decreases in gas prices and oil prices.” [YouTube, KSLA News 12, 5/18/26]

• WCCO-CBS Minnesota used data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and a professor of economics to push back on Trump’s claims. “A new report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration says it could take time for gas prices to go down, even if ships are granted safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz,” the outlet reported, adding: “Those findings, from an independent agency within the Department of Energy, differ from President Trump's claims that when the conflict ends, prices will fall.” The report also quoted Tyler Schipper, a professor of economics at the University of St. Thomas, who noted, “Now in terms of how fast prices come down, I think that is the place that people need to start resetting their expectations.” [YouTube, WCCO-CBS, 4/7/26]