US probes mystery oil trades worth over $2.6B before Trump’s Iran war announcements: Report

The US Justice Department is investigating more than $2.6 billion in suspiciously timed oil trades placed shortly before major announcements by US President Donald Trump on the Iran war, ABC News reported Thursday.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are reviewing at least four trades in which investors made large bets that oil prices would decline before Trump announced developments related to the conflict with Iran, including ceasefires, military delays and updates on the Strait of Hormuz, the report said, citing sources and London Stock Exchange Group data.

The DOJ and CFTC have not commented on the trades, while the report said the data does not identify who placed the bets and does not prove that insider trading occurred.

According to ABC News, traders bet more than $500 million that oil prices would fall on March 23, about 15 minutes before Trump announced that he would delay threatened attacks on Iran's power grid.

Another $960 million bet was placed on April 7, hours before Trump announced a temporary ceasefire, the report said.

The review comes amid heightened scrutiny over whether non-public information about US policy shifts during the Iran war may have been used to profit from sharp movements in oil markets.

The CFTC had previously been reported to be examining unusual oil futures trades made before key shifts in Trump's Iran policy, including trades on March 23 and April 7.

The probe is focused on trading in oil futures contracts on platforms operated by CME Group and Intercontinental Exchange, according to earlier reports.

Oil prices have swung sharply since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran, with markets reacting to developments including attacks on energy infrastructure, ceasefire announcements, military pauses and disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most critical oil transit routes.

The Strait of Hormuz links the Persian Gulf with global markets and is a key passageway for crude oil, petroleum products and liquefied natural gas shipments from major Gulf producers.

US lawmakers have called for closer scrutiny of the trades, warning that policy decisions related to war and diplomacy can create opportunities for market abuse if confidential government information is misused.