High diesel prices may put 'another squeeze' on the consumer, economist says

Consumers are feeling the pinch of higher gasoline prices. But another type of fuel — diesel — also threatens to push up prices at the store in a less visible way, economists said. Diesel prices have soared 68% since the start of the Iran war, a larger increase than gasoline prices, according to data from AAA. That dynamic threatens to push up costs for consumers across store shelves, from food to physical goods, at a time when inflation is already persistently high , economists said. "It's going to be another squeeze on the consumer," said Michael Reid, head of U.S. economics at the Royal Bank of Canada. "And it's really the lower- and middle-income consumers who feel it disproportionately." Average diesel prices rose to $6.