Michigan gas prices rocket up as war in Iran spikes fuel costs

(FOX 2) - Michigan gas prices shot up more than half a dollar over the week, pushing the state's fuel costs to their highest in almost two years.

Gas prices rose $0.56 from a week ago, leading to an average of $3.55 per gallon for petrol.

Big picture view:

According to AAA, Michigan gas prices are rising fast as war in Iran and uncertainty around oil production forced its way into the markets.

Motorists are now paying an average of $53 for a 15-gallon tank of gas. It's 72 cents more than this time last week and 51 cents more than this time last year.

Fuel costs are now $3 higher than 2025's highest price, which arrived last August.

What they're saying:

Those who can cut down on their driving say they are doing just that.

On Monday, oil prices surged past $114 per barrel for the first time since 2022 as the war in an Iran intensifies.

On average gas prices have been rising around the country, jumping 14 percent in a week according to some analysts.

Prices have been hovering at approximately $3.48 per gallon around the country — and many drivers say they’re trying their best to hang on.

"Kind of crazy, but if it’s already paid for, why are they going up on it?" said one driver. "That’s my thought."

"Fortunately I don’t have to drive very often so it doesn’t hurt me as bad as it does my husband, who travels a half hour each way to work," said another driver. "But having the larger vehicles it really does add up."

FOX 2: "You are noticing the difference already?"

"Already, yes," she said.

"It is just tough on everybody you know?" said another driver. "People have got to cut their lawns and all of that, go to work. So other than that, I’m pretty much fed up with it."

Over the weekend President Trump’s energy secretary, Chris Wright, said the price spike in gas is a short-term issue - expecting it to last weeks, but not several months. 

Dig deeper:

Gas prices rose despite demand dropping last week while production rose. 

"Gas prices across Michigan have skyrocketed, with drivers paying the highest prices since August of 2024," said Adrienne Woodland, spokesperson, AAA. "If crude oil prices continue to climb, pump prices may increase further."

• Most expensive gas price averages: Saginaw ($3.65), Lansing ($3.64), Traverse City ($3.63)
• Least expensive gas price averages: Marquette ($3.40), Metro Detroit ($3.49), Benton Harbor ($3.57)

War in Iran

The U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran continued for a 10th day Monday, as President Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to press ahead with a military operation that appears to have no end in sight.

The war has rattled global markets, disrupted air travel and left Iran’s leadership weakened by hundreds of Israeli and American airstrikes. Interruptions to the production and movement of oil and gas from the Persian Gulf sent oil prices soaring to over $100 Sunday for the first time in three and a half years.

Fighting across the Middle East has intensified, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promising "many surprises" in the next phase of the conflict. Meanwhile, Iran announced its new supreme leader: Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the country’s late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.