Trump's 48-hour hormuz ultimatum sends oil past $113

Oil surged to its highest close since mid-2022 on Monday as markets absorbed the full weight of Donald Trump's weekend ultimatum: Iran has 48 hours to reopen the Strait of hormuz or face strikes on its power grid. Brent crude topped $113 a barrel, its fifth consecutive daily gain. West Texas Intermediate held near $100. Tehran's response was immediate and unambiguous — attack our infrastructure and we hit back across the Middle East.

A trap of trump's own making

The ultimatum, posted at 7:44 p.m. New York time Saturday, landed like a flare in an already combustible situation. Rory Johnston, founder of Commodity Context Corp and one of the sharper minds tracking petroleum flows, put it plainly: