Intro

US President Trump said that the US International Development Finance Corporation will offer to insure tankers in the Gulf, and the US Navy will escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible. It is not clear how the former would operate, or how soon the later would happen. Markets seem unenthusiastic about this, with oil prices higher and Asian equities lower. Trump seems politically sensitive to oil prices in the context of the US affordability crisis—gasoline prices disproportionately impact inflation perceptions. Trump’s sensitivity might be important in judging the length of the war.