US Treasury chief says Hormuz operation can ease oil shock

TDT | Washington

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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said yesterday that the US mission to restore maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz can help alleviate an ongoing oil shortage, adding that “help is on the way” for consumers.

Global oil prices have since surged, as have costs at US gasoline pumps, squeezing American households as key midterm elections approach. Meanwhile, Washington is maintaining a blockade of Iranian ports.

“They (Iran) are trying to cut off international freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, and the US is opening that up,” Bessent told Fox News in an interview on Monday.

“We have blockaded the ships going into or out of Iranian ports.

Their economy is in freefall,” he added.

“Their soldiers will not have a high tolerance for not getting paid.”

But the economic fallout has been widespread globally.

In the United States, the average cost of a gallon of regular gasoline was $4.46 as of Monday morning, according to the AAA motor club. This is a sharp rise from the $2.98 level seen on February 26 before the war. “Help is on the way as of today,” Bessent said Monday. “Every crude carrier that goes through has about two million barrels,” he said.