President Donald Trump will give a televised address on the Iran war tonight at 9pm ET.
US-Iran war threatens energy supplies, sending domestic gas prices soaring
Gas prices have soared after a joint operation between the United States and Israel disrupted the supply chain for crude oil, the main raw material for gasoline.
President Donald Trump will address the country in a televised address tonight at 9pm ET and provide an “important update” on the Iran war, which has been the biggest factor impacting markets since the conflict began in late February.
President Trump has said multiple times in recent days that the United States will end its involvement in the incident soon, possibly within weeks, but investors still don’t know much and will likely want more information.
These include when and how the United States will actually leave the conflict, how it will leave Iran in charge, and what will happen to the Strait of Hormuz, which has a huge impact on oil prices.
Here are three things investors should pay attention to in Trump’s speech tonight.
The devil is always in the details
Mr. Trump is a very unpredictable person, so it’s hard to know exactly what he’ll say tonight. Obviously it’s about the Iran war, but the devil is always in the details.
The first thing investors want information about is what will happen in the Strait of Hormuz. In recent weeks, President Trump and members of his administration have hinted at taking control of the narrow waterway through which one-fifth of the world’s oil flows every day in peacetime.
But more recently, reports have suggested that President Trump may be prepared to withdraw from the war without reopening the Strait. As of this writing, oil futures prices are hovering above $99 per barrel. Clarity on President Trump’s approach to what happens in the Strait of Hormuz will be a big issue.
The second thing that investors should pay attention to, which is becoming increasingly unclear, is who President Trump and the United States are actually negotiating with on the Iran issue, and what the country’s post-war leadership looks like.
A number of Iranian officials have been killed in recent weeks. President Trump and U.S. officials have often touted progress toward a deal, which was quickly rejected by Iranian state media and some Iranian officials.
“We have the necessary will to end this conflict as long as the essential conditions are met,” Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the European Council.
However, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has adopted a very different rhetoric, and tensions appear to be growing between the two. Further insight into who currently has real power could tell us a great deal about how negotiations between the United States and Iran are actually progressing.
Finally, given President Trump’s recent public comments on social media, it would not be surprising to see the 47th president discuss the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Several members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) have opposed the war by effectively refusing to join or assist the United States, infuriating President Trump, who has said he is considering withdrawing from the military alliance.
Although the impact on markets is likely to be small in the short term, if President Trump follows through on this threat, it could have a significant long-term impact as it would likely change the way countries approach their defense strategies and affect various currencies and government bonds.
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