Bessent: Iran to Have No Oil Cargoes at Sea This Week, No Revenue from Them

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iran would, in his assessment, have no oil cargoes at sea this week and would generate no revenue from them, amid what he described as intensified U.S. economic isolation of Tehran.
In an interview with Axios, Bessent said Iran would, for the first time in his description of its oil trade, have no oil cargoes at sea during a week, adding that this would mean no revenue from those shipments.
He said U.S. policy toward Iran had shifted, in his account, from direct military operations to a blockade and subsequently to what he described as a phase of “economic isolation,” saying the current measures were aimed at reducing Tehran’s ability to generate income from oil exports.
Bessent said military operations had damaged Iran’s naval and air forces and had also affected the country’s drone and missile capabilities. He said Iran’s prospects for rebuilding those capabilities had consequently been reduced.
He added that the next phase included what he called an “iron wall” and a blockade, saying the United States had not previously resorted to a comparable measure.
Regarding the conflict’s impact on energy markets, Bessent predicted that oil supplies would improve and become more abundant, which he said could lead to lower prices.
The Treasury secretary’s remarks represent the U.S. administration’s assessment of the state of Iran’s oil exports and the impact of measures imposed on Tehran; they do not, by themselves, constitute independent data on the actual volume of Iranian oil cargoes or oil revenues.