The White House says the first “Freedom Fuel” gas station has opened in Philadelphia, offering gasoline 50 cents below the Pennsylvania state average. (White House)
As oil prices react to the recent back-and-forth between the United States and Iran, fingers are being pointed as to why gasoline prices remain closer to $4 a liter than $3 a liter.
The price of a barrel of oil influences the price of gas. At a cost per gallon, oil producers sell oil to a refinery that sells gas to the station. Also, in the price paid by consumers are state and local taxes, environmental maintenance at the station, and credit card fees.
The White House executive director of the National Energy Dominance Council, Jarrod Agen, says the administration sees more room for gas stations to reduce costs. He says that President Donald Trump personally monitors the national price of gas.
“Gas limits at the tap have increased dramatically since COVID,” Agen said. “So, they've gotten out of control at this point. Traditionally, it's a very low point. But I think they've used the Iran war as a way to increase that margin.”
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A man pumps gas at a Valero gas station on June 25, 2026, in Austin, Texas. (Photos by Brandon Bell / Getty Images)
He gave the example of the Freedom Fuel Network, which has 25 stations around Philadelphia and New Jersey. The company has significantly reduced the gas it sells, saying it has reduced the profit margin. Agen added company officials told him, “We can sell it at a premium and some of our costs and still save consumers about 50 cents per gallon, so that's a real savings, and you know if one person does it, then the rest of the market will follow.”
Aged said Freedom Fuel stations are building their capacity on what is diminishing profit margins.
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In a FOX Business exclusive, a White House official said that the network of gas stations saw gas prices increase by 51.3% in July after the introduction of their discount on July 3. The move forced 320 gas stations within a 40-kilometer radius to reduce the price of gas by 10 cents per liter, according to an official who saw the company's data.
President Donald Trump stands next to the bell before ringing it to open the New York Stock Exchange before the launch of Trump's investment accounts in the Oval Office. (Mandel GAN/AFP/Getty Images)
A White House official said that 600 stations have reduced prices because of the strong effect related to the competition that benefits drivers in the areas around Philadelphia and New Jersey.
National groups representing small gas stations are pushing back against the growing profit margin. Jeff Lenard, vice president of the National Association of Convenience Stores, blamed the loss of profit margins on credit card companies.
“Approximately 90% of the cost of a gallon of gas is determined before the dealer picks up the fuel, and after fees – mostly credit card fees – dealers typically make a 5% profit (before tax) on the gas they sell,” Lenard said in a statement to FOX Business.
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He added that, historically, the profit margin before taxes has not changed. The president of Energy Marketers of America, Rob Underwood, supported that.
“Fuel retailers are small businesses that operate on the narrow margins of a transparent, highly competitive market where crude oil prices are set globally, but pump prices are set locally on the corner of the street,” Underwood said in a statement. “Regardless of market conditions, credit card companies make a profit on every gallon by using percentage-based exchange fees — often collecting more per gallon than dealer nets — while bearing no fuel costs, environmental compliance burdens, or competitive pressure to reduce their intake.”
But Richard Hunt, executive chairman of the Electronic Payments Coalition, said the appeal was without merit. The group represents credit card company interests, and said Visa and MasterCard both cap gas transactions at $1.05.
“In Washington, no one is letting a crisis go to waste, and supporters of the Durbin-Marshall mandate should be ashamed of themselves for exploiting the conflict in Iran to spread false information,” Hunt said in a statement. “Simple facts: the exchange of a credit card on the purchase of gasoline is estimated at about $1 regardless of whether the driver buys 15 or 150 liters. The real drivers of prices are oil markets, taxes, refining costs and global events. This is not about lowering gas prices, it is about using the global crisis to continue the largest number of countries that want to sell to other countries.”
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright joins 'Mornings with Maria' to discuss falling gas prices, America's nuclear expansion, the need for AI-driven energy and the Trump administration's push to improve US energy production.
Top White House officials believe Trump's policies have pushed oil prices down where they could be. Those officials point to temporarily repealing the Jones Act, which invokes the Defense Production Act on other industry measures, allowing California to produce its own oil and giving the EPA a waiver as it works together to lower the price.
Agen believes that when we see a drop in oil prices, gas prices should quickly follow.
“There is no reason for it to increase quickly but it also decreases slowly,” he said. “We want to go down as fast as it goes up.”
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Underwood, who runs the Energy Marketers of America, believes the program is responsible for the slow decline in gas prices. “Retail prices are already falling due to lower crude oil prices, although a typical two-to-three-week lag occurs as retailers sell higher-priced items; competition then forces these savings on buyers as stocks change.”
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Electricity prices are down more than 6% from last month, according to AAA.
