In the Northern Mariana Islands, residents are used to the realities of island life — everything costs more when it has to be shipped in. But the recent surge in gasoline prices has raised eyebrows for a different reason. In just about two weeks, prices jumped from roughly $5.10 to $6.36 per gallon.
That kind of increase is hard to ignore.
The explanation we’re hearing is familiar: rising global oil prices tied to escalating conflict involving the United States and Israel against Iran. When oil markets react, local prices follow. That’s the standard narrative.
But here’s where the story starts to fall apart.
The gasoline currently being sold across the CNMI didn’t arrive yesterday. It was purchased, refined, and shipped weeks — if not months — before the recent spike in global oil prices. The same is true for beer, groceries, and restaurant supplies. These goods were all brought in under the same shipping conditions, using fuel purchased before the conflict escalated.
Yet only one of these has seen an immediate and dramatic price increase: gasoline.
Walk into a grocery store and prices are largely unchanged. Sit down at a restaurant — menu prices haven’t suddenly jumped. Buy a case of beer — it’s the same price it was before the conflict began. And yet, all of these goods depend on fuel for transportation. If higher fuel costs were truly driving immediate price increases, we would expect to see it reflected across the board.
We don’t.
So why is gasoline different?
Unlike food or retail goods, gas prices are often adjusted based not on the cost of the current supply, but on the anticipated cost of the next one. That means retailers can raise prices immediately in response to global market trends — even if their existing inventory was acquired at much lower prices.
In simple terms, consumers are being charged future prices for past purchases.
That gap — between what the fuel cost and what it is being sold for — creates additional profit. And when that profit is tied directly to a geopolitical crisis, it raises an uncomfortable question: is this legitimate market behavior, or is it profiteering?
For a small island economy like the CNMI, the impact is amplified. Higher fuel prices affect everything — from commuting costs to electricity generation to the price of goods down the line. Residents feel it immediately, and businesses eventually will too.
Which brings us to the role of government.
If fuel pricing is moving faster than the actual cost of supply, there is a clear need for transparency. The local government should be asking for detailed pricing breakdowns: When was the fuel purchased? At what cost? What margins are being applied at the pump?
Other jurisdictions have implemented temporary price controls, anti-gouging measures, or oversight mechanisms during times of crisis. At the very least, there should be clear reporting requirements so the public understands whether price increases are justified or opportunistic.
Because right now, the optics are hard to ignore.
Beer hasn’t gone up. Groceries haven’t gone up. Restaurant prices haven’t gone up.
Only gas has.
And in a place where everything arrives on the same ships, that raises a fair and necessary question: if the cost of everything else hasn’t changed, why has fuel — and who is really benefiting from it?
Glenn Smith
Editor’s note: The views and opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of NMI News Service or its staff. All assertions are the sole responsibility of the writer.
To submit an op-ed for consideration, email your piece to brad.ruszala@nminewsservice.com
