by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief
(Worthy News) – A series of unusually large market bets on falling oil prices — totaling an estimated $7 billion — is drawing growing scrutiny after the trades repeatedly occurred minutes before major Iran-related policy announcements by President Donald Trump, according to a Reuters analysis and market experts.
The trades, spread across oil, gasoline, and diesel futures on the Intercontinental Exchange and CME Group exchanges, reportedly involved massive short positions designed to profit from falling energy prices. Traders and analysts said the timing of the bets appeared highly unusual, occurring just before announcements tied to tensions and ceasefires involving Iran.
Reuters reported that the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is investigating the activity, although the agency has not publicly confirmed a probe. The U.S. Department of Justice is also reportedly examining at least part of the trading activity following media reports surrounding $2.6 billion in oil trades connected to the Iran conflict.
The first suspicious trades were reportedly spotted on March 23, moments before Trump announced a delay in threatened attacks on Iranian infrastructure, a move that triggered a sharp decline in oil prices. Similar patterns allegedly emerged again on April 7 before a ceasefire announcement, on April 17 ahead of statements regarding reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and on April 21 before Trump extended the ceasefire.
According to Reuters calculations, oil prices plunged more than 10% following several of the announcements, potentially allowing traders behind the short positions to reap hundreds of millions of dollars in profits.
“This looks well informed,” said veteran oil trader Adi Imsirovic of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, noting that regulators can trace trading activity if they choose to pursue the matter further.
Legal experts also raised alarms over the scale and timing of the trades. Robert Frenchman, a New York attorney specializing in white-collar and insider trading cases, said the quantities involved were unlikely to “escape scrutiny.”
A White House spokesperson responded by stating that all federal employees are bound by ethics rules prohibiting the use of nonpublic information for personal financial gain.
The identities of those behind the trades remain unknown, and Reuters said it could not determine whether the activity originated inside the United States or abroad.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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