U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday said there was mounting evidence of anti-consumer behavior by oil and gas companies and asked the Federal Trade Commission to dig deeper into possible anti-competitive or "illegal conduct" in the market.
Biden in August already asked the FTC to investigate possible illegal conduct causing the spike in gas prices, but said further action was needed since prices had continued to rise at the pump.
"I do not accept hard-working Americans paying more for gas because of anti-competitive or otherwise potentially illegal conduct," Biden said in a letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan on Wednesday. "I therefore ask that the Commission further examine what is happening with oil and gas markets, and that you bring all of the Commission's tools to bear if you uncover any wrongdoing."