President's Suspicious Trades: Bought During War, Sold at Ceasefire... Perfect Timing but "No Evidence"

Purchased Shares in 8 Energy Companies on First Trading Day of War
Sold ExxonMobil Stock Just Before Ceasefire Announcement

During the past six months, when international oil prices fluctuated due to the war between the United States and Iran, it is estimated that the value of shares in major oil and gas companies held by U.S. President Donald Trump increased by up to 4.4 million dollars (approximately 5.9 billion won).

U.S. President Donald Trump.

According to an analysis conducted by CNBC on September 9 (local time) of President Trump’s annual financial disclosure, company quarterly reports, and market data, the value of shares in nine major oil and gas companies held by President Trump rose by an estimated 1.5 million to 4.4 million dollars (about 2 billion to 5.9 billion won) from February 27, the day before the Iran war began, to August 31.

The companies involved are Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, Kinder Morgan, Marathon Petroleum, Occidental Petroleum, Phillips 66, Valero Energy, and Williams Companies.

CNBC calculated the increase in the valuation based on the reported asset ranges for each stock and the share price movements since February 27. However, since the financial disclosure documents do not specify the exact number of shares held or the transaction prices, this does not represent actual realized gains or the current value of holdings.

Even during the war period, trading in energy stocks continued in President Trump’s investment accounts. On March 2, the first trading day after attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran, purchases of shares in eight major oil and gas companies were reported. Among these, the amount spent on ExxonMobil stock purchases was 101,000 to 250,000 dollars (approximately 134 million to 335 million won).

On March 23, when President Trump announced he would postpone an attack on Iranian energy facilities, Brent crude oil prices plunged by about 11%. On the same day, President Trump’s investment accounts showed purchases of a total of 16 energy stock items, including ExxonMobil, Chevron, and Phillips 66. The total purchase amount was estimated at 163,000 to 570,000 dollars (about 218 million to 763 million won).

The timing of stock sales also drew attention. On April 7, one of President Trump’s investment accounts sold ExxonMobil shares worth 501,000 to 1 million dollars (about 669 million to 1.338 billion won). About two and a half hours after the market closed on that day, President Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran, and shares of ExxonMobil fell more than 6% during the early trading hours the next day.

As of June 29, President Trump’s account records show at least 23 transactions related to shares in the nine companies.

However, CNBC noted that it was not possible to confirm the actual purchase dates of these shares, and therefore could not calculate how much profit was made from these trades.

CNBC also reported that it found no evidence that President Trump or the asset management company made trades based on advance knowledge of presidential policy decisions, or that President Trump directly ordered specific trades. The White House has maintained that all investment decisions are handled independently by an asset management firm.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.