Oil jumps as Trump claims new Hormuz blockade on Iran

Per Axios, oil prices surged nine percent Monday to eighty-three dollars per barrel after President Trump announced the U.S. is reinstating a naval blockade on Iran. Trump said the Strait of Hormuz would remain open for all other nations, and the U.S. would seek a twenty percent tax on cargo to cover security costs. But vessel tracking data tells a different story: traffic through the strait has sharply dropped in recent days, reversing gains from a recent U.S.-Iran agreement. Higher oil typically lifts gasoline costs; the national average was already at three dollars and eighty-seven cents per gallon Monday and may climb toward four dollars.

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