Illinois gas prices drop nearly 12 cents as Strait of Hormuz tensions loom
Published 3:19 pm Monday, August 10, 2026
SPRINGFIELD — Average gasoline prices in Illinois fell 11.7 cents per gallon over the past week, settling at $4.20 a gallon Monday, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 4,378 stations across the state. Prices remain 12.6 cents higher than a month ago and 85.3 cents higher than a year ago.
The cheapest station in Illinois was priced at $3.49 a gallon Sunday, while the most expensive charged $5.99, a spread of $2.50 across the state.
Nationally, the average price of gasoline fell 10.7 cents over the past week to $3.94 a gallon, up 9.5 cents from a month ago and 85.6 cents from a year ago, according to GasBuddy, which compiles its figures from more than 11 million weekly price reports covering upward of 150,000 gas stations nationwide. Diesel fell 5.1 cents nationally to average $5.275 a gallon.
Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said prices fell broadly last week even as new geopolitical risks emerged that could reverse the trend.
“Average gasoline prices declined in 47 states over the last week while diesel fell in 39, with the national average price of gasoline posting a double-digit drop per gallon,” De Haan said in a statement. He said diesel’s decline was roughly half that of gasoline’s, in part because continued Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries have kept pressure on refined product markets.
De Haan added that Iran is resisting a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil shipping route, and that oil prices edged higher in trading Sunday night, signaling the recent price relief may not last. He said upward pressure on fuel prices could return quickly if the strait remains closed, and that the national average could climb to its highest level ever recorded this late in the calendar year if conditions worsen. De Haan encouraged drivers to enjoy the current dip in prices while watching how the situation in the strait develops.
