President Donald Trump’s plan to impose 20 percent fees on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz would jack up the cost of oil — if it even could be practically implemented, analysts said.
The new Hormuz charge would pose a fresh challenge to Republicans’ efforts to bring down gas prices ahead of the midterm elections. It would also be another blow to oil markets that have been under strain since the U.S. and Israel first launched attacks against Iran in February, only appearing in recent weeks to be returning to normal under the U.S. and Iran’s now-abandoned ceasefire.
Trump on Monday pronounced the United States the “guardian” of the strait, through which one-fifth of the world’s crude moved prior to the war. Trump said the U.S. would reimpose the blockade on Iranian exports it had maintained for two months earlier in the conflict and declared that the U.S. would be reimbursed “at the rate of 20% on all cargo shipped, for any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security to this very volatile section of the World.”
U.S. Central Command said on social media that the blockade would take effect Tuesday at 4 p.m. Eastern Time and it would continue to “support traffic flow” of vessels not traveling to and from Iranian ports.
