"And so there's going to be a pinch. I wish it wasn't the case, but it is," he said after top aides briefed him on recovery efforts as well as Ike's impact on the US energy sector, much of it in his adoptive home state of Texas.

"Our drivers, our folks at the pump are going to have to expect some upward pressure on price because the storm disrupted the supply of gasoline as a result of shutting down refineries and pipelines," said Bush.

At the same time, the US president said electricity was coming online again and that the two major pipelines got up and running more quickly than he had expected, but that refineries were not yet "running full blast."

"The storm was damaged a lot of infrastructure, but, truthfully, it was not as bad as some predicted that it would be on the energy sector," said Bush, who noted people in the afflicted areas would need water, food and ice until electricity is fully restored.

"We obviously watch this recovery very carefully because the federal government is playing a critical role in helping the people of the devastated areas recover. We're working closely with state and local authorities," he said.

The president noted he would travel to affected areas on Tuesday, adding: "I'm confident there'll be people that are very frustrated because their lives have been severely affected by this storm."

"And my message will be that, "We hear you and we'll work as hard and fast we can to help you get your lives back up to normal," said Bush, whose response to killer Hurricane Katrina in 2005 drew widespread criticism.

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