Skip to navigationSkip to main contentSkip to right columnADVERTISEMENTThomas KentSun, June 28, 2026 at 3:15 PM GMT+2 7 min readMoneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below.President Donald Trump is accusing major oil companies of keeping gasoline prices artificially high despite a sharp drop in crude oil prices, saying American drivers are being "gouged" and calling on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate."The big Oil Companies are not dropping their price at the pump commensurate with the sharply lower prices they are paying for Oil," Trump wrote Wednesday on Truth Social (1). "Those prices are dropping like a rock! In other words, customers are being 'gouged.'"Trump said he had instructed the DOJ to "immediately start looking into this," adding, "Gasoline prices better start going down a lot faster than what I'm seeing!"The comments come as wholesale oil prices have largely retreated to where they traded before the recent conflict with Iran, while prices at the pump have remained comparatively elevated.Brent crude prices surged during the conflict (2) before falling back toward pre-war levels as ceasefire negotiations progressed. Retail gasoline prices have been slower to retreat, fueling criticism from the White House. Speaking in the Oval Office (3), Trump argued consumers should already be seeing much cheaper gasoline."Oil prices have come down so much, and we are not seeing anything at the pump by comparison the way they should be," Trump told reporters. "We should be, in my opinion, at $2.25 right now at the pump."The companies Trump specifically mentioned (4) were Chevron (NYSE:CVX), ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM), Shell (NYSE:SHEL) and BP (NYSE:BP).Since energy prices are one of the biggest drivers of inflation, even temporary disruptions can ripple through the broader economy. For this reason, rather than trying to predict where oil prices will go next, it may be worth focusing on building diversified portfolios that can better weather periods of volatility.Trump is not the only one taking notice of prices at the pumps.A DOJ spokesperson told the BBC (5) that "the price of fuel is not only [a] national security issue, it impacts the wallet of every American," although it stopped short of confirming whether a formal investigation has been launched. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the American Petroleum Institute, which represents the U.S. oil and gas industry, disputed Trump's characterizations."Our industry shares the goal of delivering relief at the pump and restoring stability to global energy markets," API spokesperson Bethany Williams said, adding that the recent conflict is "still affecting supply, refining and inventories."Terms and Privacy PolicyEU DSA contactPrivacy & Cookie SettingsMore Info