Truckers, farmers and shippers got hit with a fresh gut punch Friday as AAA recorded the highest average U.S. diesel price in history: $5.85 a gallon, edging past the previous record of $5.8159 set in June 2022 in the aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Regular unleaded also climbed, averaging $4.15 a gallon nationally, up sharply from $3.71 a year ago for diesel, according to AAA figures reported by Fox Business. Several states, including Arkansas and Missouri, are already logging all-time highs of their own, according to regional AAA data.

Hormuz Risk Keeps Traders on Edge

The spike traces directly to the monthslong confrontation between Washington and Tehran, which escalated again this week after Iranian forces fired on U.S. Navy vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and American warships struck back at three Iranian oil tankers. Continued volatility in the strait has pushed crude into the $90-a-barrel range, according to energy-market trackers.

Because diesel powers most of the country's freight trucks, trains and farm equipment, higher prices tend to ripple outward fast, raising the cost of shipping everything from groceries to lumber.

EVEN IF YOU DON'T USE DIESEL, THOSE HIGHER COSTS GET PASSED ON TO YOU, MAKING THE FOOD ON YOUR TABLE MORE EXPENSIVE.

That warning came from Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, who tied the spike directly to the ongoing conflict. The White House pushed back on the political framing, saying President Trump "remains committed to unleashing American energy dominance, cutting costs, and putting more money back in the pockets of hardworking American families," and pointed to ongoing meetings with refiners aimed at expanding domestic capacity.

For now, relief looks distant. Analysts note the previous diesel record took years to break — this one fell in barely four years, with no clear end in sight to the Hormuz standoff driving it.