Bessent: Trade with Iran, lose dollar access — SkimNews
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- Scott Bessent announced "Operation Economic Outbound" targeting five sectors — technology, gold, aviation, shipping, and digital assets — and warned that any economic engagement with Iran will expose responsible parties to "the full reach of American power" and potentially push them out of the dollar system.
- Bessent said sanctions against a major financial institution could be announced as soon as next week; when asked about Chinese banks handling Iran transactions, he replied that "no one is above the reach of US sanctions."
- China rejected the ultimatum at a Beijing press conference, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian saying sanctions "lead to escalation" that "serves no one's interests" and that Beijing will "do what is necessary to protect our legitimate rights and interests."
- The Trump administration is offering countries a "cure period" to halt Iran trade before penalties hit, with Iran, China, Turkey, and the UAE identified as Tehran's largest trading partners and likely enforcement targets.
- Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi mocked the "economic D-Day" threat on social media, asking why a country whose military is supposedly "dismantled" and nuclear program "buried" requires "the largest financial assault in history."
- US gasoline prices have climbed above $4 a gallon nationally — roughly $1 more than a year ago — driven by Strait of Hormuz shipping disruptions that have pushed most vessels onto Iran-set routes or away from the waterway entirely.
- Analysts including the National Iranian American Council's Ryan Costello and Center for International Policy's Sina Toossi argued the campaign repeats the failed "maximum pressure" playbook, hurting ordinary Iranians while elites remain "largely insulated," with Toossi calling it "as much psychological warfare as economic warfare."
Why it matters: Bessent is demanding countries pick between Iranian trade and dollar-system access at a moment when US leverage is visibly fraying — shipping already avoids the US-backed Hormuz route, Iran's rial has collapsed to record lows, and Trump's own war narrative claims Iran's military is "dismantled." Analysts across the spectrum argue this is a bet that economic strangulation can finish what six months of war could not.
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