Treasury chief puzzled by oil surge after Trump's new Iran threat

After Donald Trump announced a sweeping “Economic D-Day” aimed at further isolating Iran, crude oil prices climbed 3 percent to a three-week high. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters he was confused by the spike, emphasizing that the department’s surprise bond repurchase was intended to bring markets back to equilibrium. He speculated that traders might have misinterpreted Trump’s rhetoric, which promises unprecedented economic warfare but does not specify concrete actions.

The surge continued with an additional 2 percent rise after Bessent reiterated the goal of collapsing the Iranian government. Meanwhile, traffic through the Strait of Hormuz stayed low, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected the U.S. threats as a diversion from domestic economic problems.