Iran conflict pushing up oil, food, and fertilizer prices

May 28, 2026

A new round of US-Iran strikes is driving up oil and food costs, bad news for American households already squeezed by high prices.

  • Iran hit a US air base after fresh American strikes, and oil jumped 3%.
  • Wheat is up 20% from a year ago and soybeans up 11%, with higher food prices expected by end of summer.
  • A third of the world's fertilizer ships through the Strait of Hormuz, and fertilizer prices have jumped 44% since the conflict started.
  • Diesel, which farmers depend on, is up 74% from a year ago, making food even more expensive to grow and move.
  • Nitrogen fertilizer is up 30-40% right during planting season, hitting US farmers hard.

Outlook: Food and gas prices will likely keep rising through the summer unless the Strait of Hormuz reopens and the fighting stops.

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