Bessent says gas prices will fall after the Iran conflict but gives no timeline

As of 1:50 p.m. ET, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that higher prices are the result of an "energy shock" tied to the war with Iran and that they will ease once the conflict ends, but he declined to say when that would be.

"We will get to the other side of the Iran conflict, and those prices will come down," Bessent told NBC's "Meet the Press".

Asked directly whether he expects gas prices to come down by the new year, he answered: "Well, again, it will depend on what happens with the Iran conflict".

The numbers he was asked about

Host Kristen Welker said consumer prices rose 3.7% in September, the fastest pace in five months, and that the price of gas is up 44% since the war with Iran began. Bessent did not dispute those figures on air. He said core inflation, which excludes food and energy, "has been very flat before this month" and had fallen four months in a row, and he pointed to lower rents and prescription drug prices.

"This is an energy supply side shock. We will get to the other side of this," Bessent said. Pressed on when the administration would take responsibility for the economy, he said: "Well, we will own the economy".

He also blamed the previous administration, saying Americans saw 21.5% inflation and about 17% wage growth under President Joe Biden, and that real wages have risen 1.5% under President Donald Trump. GROKsiNEWS.com has not independently checked those figures.

Vance points to refineries

Vice President JD Vance gave a similar message at a CBS News town hall with Michigan voters that aired Saturday evening. "When this conflict is over, we are going to see gas prices come down," he said, according to CBS News. Fox News reported that the town hall was held in Flat Rock, Michigan.

Vance also blamed refinery closures. "That's actually the biggest reason why gas prices are so high, because when Joe Biden was president, we had about 20% of American refining capacity that went offline," he said, according to Fox News. He said the administration is using the Defense Production Act to help restore domestic refining capacity, Fox reported. Vance did not cite a source for the 20% figure, and GROKsiNEWS.com has not verified it.

Why it matters

The comments come 16 days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, with gas prices weighing on voters. In a new NBC News Decision Desk poll, 67% of respondents called gas prices a "very serious" or "somewhat serious" problem. Neither Bessent nor Vance offered a date for when prices would fall.