Trump Walks Back 20% Strait of Hormuz Transit Fee in Favor of Gulf Investment Deals
- President Trump on July 14 abandoned a plan announced a day earlier to impose a 20% 'reimbursement fee' on cargo moving through the Strait of Hormuz, opting instead for trade and investment deals with Gulf states (Fox Business, BBC).
- Trump said regional leaders had agreed to 'massive' investments in the U.S., removing a fresh layer of supply-chain and oil-market stress that had helped push crude sharply higher on Monday.
- The U.S. separately said it would continue its naval blockade targeting Iranian trade even as China urged normal Hormuz passage, keeping geopolitical risk premium in crude.