Trump falsely claims oil prices are lower than when Iran war began

At a NATO summit press conference in Ankara, Trump defended renewed strikes on Iran by claiming oil prices were lower than when the war started in late February 2026. Fact-checkers found both Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate were pricier on July 8 than just before the war. Oil had fallen during a ceasefire but jumped again amid renewed attacks, resumed US sanctions on Iranian oil sales, and Trump's own declaration that the ceasefire was 'over.' Brent surged over 3% to $76.48 that morning, the highest since June 23, driven by the very strikes Trump was defending. This is the latest in a series of false oil price claims by Trump related to the Iran war, continuing a pattern of using fabricated economic data to shield military escalation from public accountability.

"And you see the oil prices are lower than they were when I started." Quote verified against source