Oil prices moved higher on July 14, a day after President Trump announced the United States would reimpose a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz to try to nudge Iran to serious peace negotiations.
Gasoline prices moved higher by some measures. A day ago, there was talk the average U.S. retail price of gasoline was heading back to $4 per gallon.
The new blockade went into effect at 4 p.m. ET on July 14, and it was accompanied by a fourth straight day of air attacks on Iranian military installations along the Persian Gulf.
Few ships are getting through the Strait. Before the Israel-U.S. war with Iran started on Feb. 28, some 120 tankers passed through the strait and about 20% of the world’s crude oil. The daily total now is fewer than 20 ships.
Trump gives up on protection fee
But President Trump walked back his idea of charging a fee of 20% of the value of a ship’s cargo to provide protection services.
The fee, if applied to the largest oil tankers, would have generated millions of dollars in revenue for the United States and forced oil prices much higher.
Instead, Trump promised, nations in the Persian Gulf — other than Iran — would be investing that money in the United States.
Crude is up 38% for the year
Crude oil in New York closed at $79.34 per 42-gallon barrel, up 1.5% on the day. A day earlier, after Trump announced his blockage and the fee, crude jumped more than 9%. The close for the benchmark U.S. crude is up 16% since July 6 and 38% so far in 2026.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose 1.7% to $84.73 a barrel. It’s up 39% this year.
GasBuddy’s national average price for gasoline was up 0.6% to $3.847 a gallon. It is 15.7% below its peak average of $4.566 gallon, reached in May. But price is still up 36% for the year.
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Trump’s protection fee idea had lots of problems, not least of which was it might be contrary to international law.
It also contradicted Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has asserted in late June that international law prohibits any country from charging tolls in international waterways like the Strait of Hormuz.
AFP via Getty Images
Wall Street moves higher
Walking back the protection fee, which was going to push oil prices much higher, helped power a decent stock market rally, built on two bits of decent news:
- The Consumer Price Index report for June showed lower inflation, largely because retail gasoline prices fell 5.7% during the month.
- Bank profits were stronger than expected, and technology stocks mostly surged.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 0.4% to 7,544, led by technology stocks. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.9% to 26,107.
Energy stocks, however, moved lower. Exxon Mobil fell 0.1%. Chevron dropped 0.5%.
Related: Drivers face an unpleasant surprise at the gas pump
