Oil prices rose at market open after President Donald Trump leveled a profanity-laden threat against Iran on Sunday.
The president said if Iran didn’t open the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday, the US would target its power plants and bridges.
As of 6 p.m. in New York, contracts for Brent crude were trading at $109.57 per barrel, after ending the session Friday at $109.24.
Contracts for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) were up 3% at $115 a barrel, after clearing $111.54 at market close on Friday.
“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah,” the president posted to his Truth Social account on Sunday.
After the US and Israel began bombing Iran in late February, Iran retaliated by essentially closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas passes.
That closure and other war-related shocks have ripped through the global economy. The average price of gas in the US now exceeds $4 for the first time since 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine. The cost of groceries in the US is also rising.
Jet fuel prices, too, are on the rise, reaching $195 at the end of March. Those rising costs, coupled with shortages, have pushed some airlines to pass on additional costs to travelers or cancel flights.
