The Trump admin said energy costs were a small price to pay in Iran war, but U.S. consumers are paying nearly 8x more than anyone else in fuel costs

The Iran war continues to weigh on Americans’ wallets, and it’s costing them more in increased fuel costs than consumers in any other country in the world, new data finds. As President Donald Trump argues the cost of the war will be justified with economic prosperity, his administration may be pushing policies making the problem worse.

U.S. consumers have paid an average of $471 more in fuel prices since the beginning of the Iran war in February, according to a report published on Monday by Finland-based nonprofit research institute Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). That’s nearly eight times greater than the average of about $60 in increased energy costs per person globally. As a country, the U.S. has spent $160 billion total on increased fuel costs since the beginning of the war, with China following at $54 billion, and Canada coming in third at $17 billion.

The Iran war has cost U.S. households about $2,000, according to Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, a sum that includes both soaring prices at the gas pump as well as increased air fares and inflation as a result of increased transportation expenses and supply chain shuffles over the last seven months of Middle East turmoil.

Trump has repeatedly tried to assuage Americans’ anxieties about increased costs associated with the war. At a rally in North Carolina in September, the president downplayed affordability concerns. He has argued the........

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