The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that the Iran war has led to a spike in oil prices that is passing through to other products. A New York Times dispatch to The Globe reports that gasoline prices are a visible reminder of economic challenges for American consumers. However, the rising cost of diesel, which has increased more quickly than gasoline, poses a more insidious threat by potentially driving inflation across various goods. Diesel "powers a lot of basic industries," said Vidya Mani, a visiting associate professor at Cornell University's business school whose research focuses on supply chains. "Mining industries, chemical factories, clothing factories -- a lot of those things come from diesel." The average cost of a gallon of diesel in the United States was $5.38 (U.S.) on Friday, according to AAA, up nearly 45 per cent since the start of the war. Gasoline, by comparison, has climbed about 33 per cent. Much of the diesel in the United States comes from domestic supplies. But oil companies can still price the commodity at global market rates. In January, a little more than 40 per cent of the cost of diesel came from the price of crude oil, according to the Energy Information Administration.