(Bloomberg) — US President Donald Trump demanded Iran surrender as the war on the Islamic Republic raged for a seventh day, with the impact reverberating across global supply chains and energy markets.
Washington won’t negotiate an end to the conflict and will only accept “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday, raising fears of a protracted conflict. The US and its allies plan to select a “GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s),” he said.
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US crude futures hit $90 a barrel and Brent crude neared $95 a barrel for the first time in almost two years during the session, with traders warning $100 could be on the horizon sooner rather than later. US oil is on track for the biggest weekly percentage gain in at least two decades.
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remains at a near-total halt and energy exporters are scrambling for routes out of the region. Citigroup Inc. estimated that the crude oil market is losing about 7 million to 11 million barrels a day of supply due to the disruption through Hormuz, a chokepoint for a fifth of global oil flows.
WATCH: President Donald Trump said he won’t seek a negotiated end to the war with Iran, demanding in a post on social media that Tehran capitulate as US and Israeli airstrikes continue. Source: Bloomberg
The White House has pushed back on worries around surging energy prices, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Friday citing “tangible actions” to ease what she said was a predicted spike.
In an interview with Fox News, she noted Trump’s pledge to provide insurance to cargo vessels in the region, and even US Navy escorts if needed. She also suggested that “drilling expeditiously at home” and tapping newfound markets in Venezuela would help calm markets.
Trump said Thursday that “action to reduce pressure on oil is imminent” as US gasoline pump prices advanced to the highest level since September 2024. Rising fuel prices could be particularly damaging for the White House ahead of midterm elections in November.
The Trump administration has “many, many” tools to address the surge in oil prices, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said Friday in a Bloomberg Television interview. “We’re also very optimistic that we’re going to be able to get this near-term problem resolved relatively quickly.”
Qatar warned that all Gulf energy exporters would shut down production within weeks in the event of a lengthy war, the Financial Times reported, citing an interview with the country’s energy minister. The Wall Street Journal said Kuwait has begun cutting production at some fields after running out of places to store bottled-up crude.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned the US and Israel against waging an “endless war” that could lead to the disintegration of Iran, a new migration crisis in Europe and lasting economic damage.
Iran fired a barrage of missiles and drones targeting a number of Gulf countries overnight and into Friday, with particularly powerful blasts heard in Kuwait. Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were also attacked. Missile alerts were sent in Dubai on Friday for a second day, although residents were quickly given the all-clear.
Israel — acting with the US — maintained airstrikes on the Islamic Republic. The country’s forces “significantly expanded” a ground presence inside Lebanon, where forces have stepped up their assault on Tehran-aligned Hezbollah, and unleashed a wave of airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs.
Posting before Trump’s comments demanding surrender, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said that some countries have initiated efforts for mediation. While the Islamic Republic is “committed to lasting peace,” he said, it will continue to defend itself.
Earlier this week, Iran denied a report that its Ministry of Intelligence reached out to the US to negotiate a resolution.
Trump vowed on Thursday to “totally demolish” Iranian forces, telling NBC he wanted to “clean out” Iran’s leadership structure and had names in mind to take over. That suggested the US sees regime change as the ultimate goal, after days of conflicting explanations for why it launched the war and how the administration saw it playing out.
The US-Israeli war has left at least 1,332 people dead in Iran so far, and dozens of others have been killed elsewhere in the region in retaliatory strikes. Six US troops have been killed, all in the first two days of fighting. In all, around a dozen countries have been embroiled in the conflict.
Iran is poised to elect a successor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed on Feb. 28, the first day of the war. Mojtaba Khamenei, the slain leader’s second-oldest son, is in the running. Trump said he was a “lightweight” who wouldn’t change the regime’s policies and insisted on being personally involved in picking the country’s next leader.
Airlines remain hamstrung by the conflict, with the number of canceled flights to Middle East hubs surpassing 23,000 since fighting began. Thousands of passengers remained stranded in the Gulf region, although on Friday Emirates said it’s aiming for a return to full network operations in coming days.
Arab states reported intercepting Iranian projectiles overnight into Friday. Bahrain said a unit at its Sitra refinery, the region’s oldest, caught fire after being struck by a missile. Qatar thwarted an attack targeting Al Udeid Air Base, a US military facility. The US suspended operations at its embassy in Kuwait.
Saudi Arabia said it had intercepted multiple missiles and drones overnight. The kingdom is diverting millions of barrels of crude to a port on its Red Sea coast, helping the world’s top exporter maintain supplies.
Countries in Europe and Asia are moving to bolster the region’s defenses. Italy intends to send air-defense systems, as well as counter-drone capabilities, to the Gulf, Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said Thursday.
South Korea said it’s in talks with the US about the possible redeployment of weapons, including Patriot air-defense systems. France has authorized US military support aircraft not involved in operations in Iran to use Istres Air Base, AFP reported.
NATO said it was boosting its missile defense posture following the downing on Wednesday of an Iranian missile heading toward Turkish airspace.
Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said strikes have neutralized more than 60% of Iran’s ballistic missile launchers. Iran’s navy has also suffered devastating losses.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters “it could be six, it could be eight, it could be three” weeks before operations are concluded. Trump told Politico the US has an “unlimited supply of weapons.”
“Iran is hoping we cannot sustain this,” Hegseth told a news conference later at Central Command’s headquarters in Florida. “Our capabilities are overwhelming and gathering still, as are those of our Israeli partners. Our munitions are full up.”
–With assistance from Omar Tamo, Dana Khraiche, Dan Williams, Fiona MacDonald, Mike Cohen, John Bowker and Devika Krishna Kumar.
(Updates with additional detail and context, starting from third paragraph.)
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