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Bessent Says He Doesn’t “Understand” Oil Price Spike After Trump War Escalation

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20.08.2026

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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expressed confusion as to why crude oil prices rose on Thursday, hours after Donald Trump threatened yet another escalation against Iran nearly six months into the war that has thrown global oil markets into chaos.

Speaking to reporters, Bessent brought up the rise in oil prices as he discussed the muted effect of the Treasury Department’s surprise bond buyback announcement yesterday, saying that the department is “trying to bring the market back into equilibrium.”

“We’ve got a spike in oil prices today that I don’t really understand,” he said.

“Our announcement is for economic action, and I think that the economic action will mean that oil prices will come down sooner,” he said.

Bessent was referring to Trump’s threat, issued Thursday morning, of imposing an “ECONOMIC D-DAY” on Iran — yet another escalation that had no immediate effect on Iran’s obstruction of the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump Says He’ll “Bomb the S—” Out of Oman If Country Makes Deal With Iran

“I am announcing the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY! This will be Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

He pledged to take action against any country........

© Truthout