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Rubio: Trump Administration Has Plan To Calm Oil Markets

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The Trump administration will unveil a plan on Tuesday to combat the rise in oil prices triggered by the U.S. military strikes against Iran, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday,

Rubio’s statement comes as U.S. oil futures prices jumped more than 6 percent on Monday after Iran retaliated by attacking energy infrastructure in the region. Those prices are likely to extend their rally on a news report that a senior official with Iran's Revolutionary Guards said it had closed the Strait of Hormuz and warned it would attack ships trying to pass through it.

The Strait of Hormuz is a vital choke point for more than 20 percent of the world’s waterborne crude and gas shipments from the Persian Gulf to global markets.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will carry out the program, Rubio told reporters before heading into an Iran war briefing with lawmakers. Rubio did not divulge what it would be.

“We knew that going in would be a factor,” Rubio said of rising oil prices. “We talked about it last night again about this program, we talked this morning. And starting tomorrow you will see us rolling out those phases to try to mitigate against that.”

“We're going to destroy their Navy,” Rubio told reporters.

Iran’s attacks against vessels in and near the strait has become a major impediment to global crude flows, with oil tankers either waiting for clear passage or taking a much longer route to reach their destinations.