Governor Tim Walz (D-Minn) on Sunday accused President Donald Trump of insider trading as oil prices surged following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
How Much Will Trump Make?
In a post on the social media platform X, Walz quoted a post by CNBC, which said that oil prices surged 7% after tensions escalated between Tehran and Washington. “So how much will the Trump family make in the stock market tomorrow morning?” Walz asked in the post.
The speculation comes as Rep. Sam Liccardo (D-Calif.), in a letter to Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins, shared that a number of trades made during the war pointed towards the investors having advanced knowledge of key policy decisions.
Walz had also flagged similar concerns in the past, calling for transparency and demanding to know what lawmakers and officials traded stocks before Trump’s announcement last month about halting strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure.
Peter Schiff Flags Market Manipulation Concerns
Meanwhile, Investor Peter Schiff slammed Trump about the situation in the Middle East, sharing that the President’s claims about Iran on Truth Social on Friday pointed towards “market manipulation” as a $760 million bet against crude oil prices came into light.
Notably, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf had earlier threatened to expose several Wall Street insiders, who were allegedly involved in manipulating U.S. policy against Tehran to fulfill their interests.
As Iran announced the closure of the key trading route, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that Trump’s threats to strike Iranian energy infrastructure following the closure were the President’s tactic to bring some leverage to the negotiating table.
Oil Prices
As tensions escalate, crude oil prices surged. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil price at the time of writing this article was $88.94/barrel, demonstrating a 6.07% surge, while Brent crude was $94.72 per barrel, a 4.85% increase.
On the other hand, gas prices remained above the $4 mark on Monday, according to data from the American Automobile Association (AAA), with the national average price for a gallon of gasoline at $4.042. California and Hawaii continued to lead the charts for highest gas prices at $5.837/gallon and $5.670/gallon, respectively.
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