As the war with Iran has entered its second month despite President Trump previously claiming that it was a “short excursion to the country,” the situation continues to escalate with oil prices in the U.S. surging.
Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has proven to be highly effective, hampering global fuel distribution. Trump previously claimed that the U.S. did not care about the strait being blocked, as he said, “The United States imports almost no oil through the Hormuz Strait and won’t be taking any in the future. We don’t need it.”
However, Trump’s threats on Truth Social on Easter Sunday showed that he probably did care about the strait being operational. Taking to the social media platform, Trump wrote, “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F—n’ Strait, you crazy b—–ds, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH!”
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If Trump thought the post would intimidate Iranian officials or stabilize markets, it did not. The post backfired spectacularly as oil prices rose even higher after Trump posted on social media.
According to CNN, a gallon of gas rose to $4.11 on Sunday, according to AAA data. This is nearly 38% higher than at the start of the war. Moreover, the cost of Brent crude rose 1.4 percent to $110.60 while U.S. crude rose 1.8 percent to $113.60, the highest level in three years.
Trump had given a similar ultimatum to Iran on March 21, but then extended the deadline to April 6. Following his Truth Social post, an Iranian official responded that the strait would remain closed till the U.S. fully compensates Iran for the damages it has undergone which it said was initiated by the United States and Israel.
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The official further mentioned that Trump’s threats showed that the U.S. has “resorted to obscenities and nonsense out of sheer desperation and anger.” Before this expletive-filled threat, Trump had addressed the nation on Wednesday regarding the Iran war, following which the stock market fell. With the market being closed on Friday, stocks fell on Sunday as Dow futures were down 0.69%, or 324 points and S&P 500 futures fell 0.76%, while Nasdaq futures declined 0.91%.
The Iran war has been wreaking havoc on the U.S. economy, and while Trump had previously claimed that it would all come to an end soon, that possibility does not appear imminent.
Trump’s most recent threat has also backfired with Iranian officials making their stance on the matter clear. It now remains to be seen how the leaders of the involved countries deal with this matter further.
