Canadian pump prices creep higher as Mideast fighting escalates

Brent crude, the international standard, was hovering in the triple digits in Wednesday trading after attacks on oil facilities and ships in the Middle East threatened to further debilitate an already weakened supply chain. The last time prices were that high was in July.

“Brent breaking above US$100 is a major psychological milestone for markets, but the bigger concern is what this means for inflation,” Lukman Otunuga, market research head at global broker FXTM, said Wednesday.

Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries have further squeezed the market, De Haan added.

“At least for now, Canadian motorists across most provinces are going to have to dig deeper.”

Gasbuddy, which crowdsources pump price data from across the U.S. and Canada, pegs the national average for a litre of regular unleaded gasoline in Canada at just above $1.80, an almost four-cent jump from a day earlier.

“It likely could hit $1.82 to $1.85 here in the next week or two,” De Haan said.

Diesel prices, already touching record highs, could also climb an additional five to 10 cents a litre, he added.

And that will filter through to consumers in a “furious fashion” in the weeks ahead, as trucks and railroads pass costs on, De Haan said. It’s also the “worst possible time” for farmers, who are getting into their fields to harvest their crops and need diesel to run their machinery.

When it comes to diesel costs, there’s not much that can be done, he added.

“Farmers can’t really let their crops go to waste. Trucks have to still haul goods to the market that are needed.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2026.

— with files from The Associated Press

Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press

Canadian pump prices creep higher as Mideast fighting escalates

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