Kimberly Adams

Wolf says aid groups he works with have been reporting a lot more need.

Could the Iran conflict make the situation worse?

Well, in Asia and Europe, natural gas prices have been soaring because liquefied natural gas exports from the Middle East have been interrupted.

But for the U.S., there's some good news, says Ken Medlock, energy economist at Rice University.

That's because the U.S.

actually produces plenty of natural gas.

It even exports a growing portion of what it makes.

And Tom Tseng, assistant professor of energy finance at Texas Christian University, says natural gas prices in the U.S.

should actually come down soon.

Meaning Americans are likely to see some relief from the higher bills they've been paying.

And natural gas prices here in the U.S.

should remain relatively affordable compared to what's happening in the rest of the world.

I'm Novosafo for Marketplace.

Look, this story is changing quickly, but we've got you covered.

Be sure to listen to David Brancaccio and our Marketplace Morning Report team to get the latest on how this war is affecting the global economy and your personal economy, too.

Give it a listen every weekday morning.

Energy prices aside, inflation over the past year has been a lot more muted than economists expected.

That's despite the fact that the president's tariffs are still making imported goods more expensive.

Now, a handful of factors are holding inflation back.

Trade agreements, exemptions for various industries, and a lot of companies are just absorbing the costs of tariffs rather than passing it along to customers.