“Persian Gulf energy producers are concluding that Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz will become permanent, disrupting their oil and gas exports and global energy supplies indefinitely,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The problem is they worry the alternative—going back to war—would be worse.”
“The conundrum highlights how the war has unleashed a more antagonistic Iran and left a region that is vital to the world’s energy security with no good option for countering it.”
“Oil has Trump over a political barrel ahead of the midterms,” Politico reports.
“As the latest phase of the Iran war drags on, without either resolution or significant escalation, the rising cost of oil remains Republicans’ greatest liability heading into the fall — combining the war’s unpopularity and enduring cost-of-living concerns into one package for Democrats to hammer the party in power.”
“Today, U.S. oil prices once again spiked past $80 a barrel after hopes of a Strait of Hormuz deal pushed them lower last week. Brent crude, the global benchmark, reached roughly $85 a barrel. And the Energy Department said the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve has now dipped below 300 million barrels — hitting its lowest level since 1983… after Trump released lots of domestic oil to try to blunt the Hormuz impact.”
“The Trump administration has agreed to provide more than $2 billion in funding for companies producing batteries and critical minerals, adding to a wave of government cash aimed at weaning the U.S. off Chinese suppliers,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
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“A federal judge ordered the Pentagon to lift its freeze on reviewing offshore wind energy projects for national security concerns, one of several tools the Trump administration has used to undercut the renewables industry,” the Washington Post reports.
“Democrats plan to scrutinize soaring profits in the oil sector if they take control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections, raising the specter that companies could face congressional investigations and hearings,” Bloomberg reports.
“The U.S. Treasury secretary signaled Washington and Tehran could reach a deal over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz as soon as Tuesday or Wednesday, sending the oil price 4 percent lower,” the Financial Times reports.
Said Scott Bessent: ‘There is a chance we may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the strait and move towards a more normalized position in this conflict.”
Bloomberg: Bessent suggests U.S.-Iran Hormuz deal possible in coming days.
“President Donald Trump scolded ExxonMobil Holdings Corp. and Chevron Corp. for their soaring profits, as oil prices surged amid the war in Iran he launched in February alongside Israel,” Bloomberg reports.
“Trump on Monday said the biggest U.S. oil companies are ‘making too much money,’ urging them to ‘give some of that back to the public’ and cut retail gasoline prices.”
Washington Post: Why Trump is lashing out at Chevron amid profit windfall.
“President Donald Trump criticized Chevron Corp. Chief Executive Officer Mike Wirth for failing to mention his administration’s pro-fossil fuel policies in an interview with Fox Business Network and called on oil companies to bring pump prices ‘DOWN, NOW!,'” Bloomberg reports.
“Nearly eight months after President Trump predicted U.S. companies would ‘rapidly rebuild Venezuela’s dilapidated oil industry’ to boost production, no new petroleum deals have been finalized there with American firms,” Axios reports.
“The U.S. Department of Energy is largely to blame.”
“America’s largest oil companies reported a blockbuster quarter after the Iran war caused a historic dislocation in global markets that sent energy prices soaring,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“At ExxonMobil profits more than doubled from a year earlier to their highest level since 2022, while Chevron reported its highest quarterly earnings on record.”
Financial Times: Chevron and Exxon earnings soar as Trump threatens price interventions.
“The Iran war has revealed China’s enormous power over global oil prices, thanks to its position as the world’s largest buyer,” Axios reports.
“China’s reaction to the oil shock — by substantially withdrawing from buying on world markets — helped prevent the worst of the price spikes that experts thought would follow from the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.”
“Few expected that China could maintain this low level of oil buying without deeply damaging its domestic economy. But as the war approaches its sixth month, China has done just that.”
Wall Street Journal: “Thanks to U.S. crude prices averaging $95 a barrel between March and June—up from about $66 before the Iran war—ExxonMobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Occidental Petroleum are expected to collectively rake in some $31 billion in earnings for the second quarter of the year, according to FactSet estimates. That is up from about $12 billion for the same period last year.”
“The cash bonanza is bound to fuel mounting tensions between the industry and its White House ally as the conflict in the Middle East expands and gasoline prices have risen past $4 a gallon.”
“A bipartisan group of senators announced a deal Tuesday on long-awaited legislation to allow President Donald Trump to impose more restrictions on major buyers of Russian energy,” Bloomberg reports.
“The bill extends penalties on Iran and singles out Russian gas and oil exports, empowering the president to target the top five buyers of Russian crude and natural with tariffs, as well as the top five countries aiding Russia’s energy sanctions evasion, according to text released Tuesday.”
“The White House is pushing Congress to break a decades-long impasse around the handling of nuclear waste and entice states to get on board,” Politico reports.
“The Trump administration is seeking changes to federal law to allow the Department of Energy to partner with states willing to store waste generated at the nation’s nuclear reactors.”
“The decision by President Trump to grant Saudi Arabia access to American nuclear technology aligns with his administration’s push to accelerate domestically backed nuclear power projects around the world,” the New York Times reports.
“But it may also contribute to a major trend in Mr. Trump’s second term: allowing the government to help enrich the president, his family, advisers and others in his orbit.”
“There is no evidence at this point that Mr. Trump’s friends or family helped orchestrate the Saudi nuclear deal. Yet a number of the president’s allies and relatives, including members of his cabinet, stand to benefit if his big bet on nuclear power pays off.”
“The wars in Iran and Ukraine show how the drone tech revolution makes it easier — and cheaper — to interrupt energy supplies by striking refineries and oil tankers,” Axios reports.
“It’s an important reason why oil traded at $100 per barrel this week and gasoline and diesel fuel are so expensive these days.”
”Looking ahead, the way drones are reshaping modern warfare has high stakes for how policymakers and companies view new and existing power grids, pipelines, liquefied natural gas ports and plenty in between.”
“Global oil prices hovered around $100 a barrel Friday after Iran rejected a U.S. cease-fire offer, fueling investor concerns that the widening conflict could throttle energy shipments from the region indefinitely,” the New York Times reports.
“Claims of strikes on tankers in the Red Sea by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia group on Thursday added to fears about the flow of oil out of the Middle East. The group has threatened to blockade Saudi ships taking an alternate route to avoid the Strait of Hormuz.”
Los Angeles Times: War escalates, oil prices surge as Iran-backed Houthis strike Saudi tankers in Red Sea.
“President Donald Trump declared the USA has no need for the Strait of Hormuz — but he still wants to pummel Iran to prove it can never control the vital oil passage anyway,” Mediaite reports.
Said Trump, referring to Venezuela: “It’s been incredible actually, it’s got serious oil. In fact, if you combine us and Venezuela, we have about 62% of the world’s oil market, so we don’t need straits, we don’t need anything.'”
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
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