Gasoline and energy costs rise, with inflation slightly up

Gasoline and energy costs rise, with inflation slightly up

Overall inflation increased slightly in September, while energy prices rose dramatically.

The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the preferred inflation metric for the Federal Reserve, rose by 0.5 percent last month and was up 3.6 percent relative to September 2025.

The price of gasoline and other energy goods rose by 9.2 percent from August to September, after increasing by 4.4 percent from July to August.

Gasoline and energy costs have risen in six of nine months this year, as the Iran war sparked oil price shocks via the Islamic Republic’s restrictions on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Food and beverage prices, meanwhile, held steady for the second straight month. The cost of food and beverages has not risen by more than 0.5 percent month over month since the start of 2025.

Welcome to The Hill’s Energy & Environment newsletter, I’m Rachel Frazin — keeping you up to speed on the policies impacting everything from oil and gas to new supply chains.

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How policy will affect the energy and environment sectors now and in the future:

Finnish police opened a criminal investigation Thursday into Google’s work on a planned data center in northern Finland after the company cleared hundreds of acres of forest without completing required environmental reviews.

Higher energy costs have helped make affordability a top issue in the 2026 midterms, but voters aren’t all worried about the same bills.

The most important issues that U.S. voters care about in the upcoming elections are economy, healthcare and the war in Iran, according to a poll released Thursday.

News we’ve flagged from other outlets touching on energy issues, the environment and other topics :

Trump administration touts $330M solar investment in South Carolina ( WLOS )

Europe Set to Release 42 Million Barrels of Oil, France Says ( Bloomberg )

Maryland hits back at Trump’s latest golf course revamp ( Politico )

President Trump will no longer travel to Kansas over the weekend to rally voters as the state’s competitive Senate race enters its final stretch ahead of the midterm election. Read more

British broadcaster Piers Morgan clashed with former White House press secretary Katie Zacharia over her abrupt departure from the Trump administration, accusing her of sounding like a “robot” as she repeatedly dodged questions about her five-day tenure. Read more