Giuseppe Cacace/AFP via Getty Images
- President Donald Trump offered political risk insurance for "ALL Maritime Trade, especially Energy."
- The president also said on Truth Social that the US Navy will also provide an escort "if necessary."
- Fighting in the Middle East is affecting vessels near the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
President Donald Trump on Tuesday offered political risk insurance and a US Navy escort for shipments flowing through the Persian Gulf amid attacks on oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz.
"Effective IMMEDIATELY, I have ordered the United States Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to provide, at a very reasonable price, political risk insurance and guarantees for the Financial Security of ALL Maritime Trade, especially Energy, traveling through the Gulf," Trump said in a Truth Social post.
Further details on Trump's directive were not immediately released. The president said the US Navy will also provide an escort for tankers "if necessary."
A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The assurances from the president come as fighting in the Middle East has impacted multiple ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
On Sunday, multiple vessels were attacked, including a US-sanctioned oil tanker, according to Oman's Maritime Security Center.
The attacks and threats against energy shipments have already caused spikes in oil prices. Crude prices first surged more than 12% as the market responded to the US-Israel joint strikes the US against Iran over the weekend.
Trump's provision of a financial backstop through the DFC and a potential Navy escort could calm markets in the short term by providing assurances for vessels going through the Hormuz, a strategic waterway for global oil supplies and other cargo.
The DFC already sells political risk insurance for overseas investments, covering expropriation or political violence such as terrorism. Trump's announcement proposes that the DFC sell insurance and guarantees for all commercial shipping at a "very reasonable price" going through the Hormuz — a much broader scope of coverage than what the government agency typically underwrites.