Diesel prices are expected to stay high into 2027, which is bad news for drivers, truckers, and anyone buying goods that move by road.

• Goldman Sachs expects diesel to stay expensive because refineries cannot keep up with demand, and Saudi Arabia says oil stockpiles will take two years to refill.
• The pain is worse abroad — UK drivers are paying about $10 a gallon after the US-Iran war, versus roughly $6 in the US.
• Diesel costs ripple through the whole economy, so higher prices feed into food and everything else that gets shipped.
• The bigger risk is debt: foreign lenders fund nearly a third of US borrowing, and China and Japan are pulling back, which would push borrowing costs up for everyone.
• Military spending keeps climbing — France just test-fired a new ballistic missile and talked openly about needing to be feared, while the US abruptly moved its B-1 bombers out of England over a reported Iranian drone threat.

Outlook: High diesel prices plus rising deficits and shrinking foreign demand for US debt point to more cost pressure on people and businesses through next year.