Scandal: A series examining corruption in leadership and its downstream consequences.
CNBC estimates President Donald Trump’s investments in nine major oil-and-gas companies rose $1.5 million to $4.4 million in value from the eve of the Iran war through Aug. 31. Diesel has since reached a record $6.16 a gallon.
As Americans paid more at the pump during the Iran war, President Donald Trump continued to own millions of dollars in individual oil and gas stocks that were rising in value. AAA reported that regular gasoline averaged $4.31 a gallon nationally on Sept. 12, up from $3.19 a year earlier. Diesel averaged $6.16, the highest national average in AAA’s records and more than $2.45 above its level a year earlier.
CNBC calculated that Trump’s nine largest disclosed oil and gas holdings increased in estimated value by $1.5 million to $4.4 million between Feb. 27, the eve of the war, and Aug. 31.
CNBC emphasized that the estimate did not represent realized profit or Trump’s precise current holdings. Federal disclosures report asset values in ranges rather than exact share counts, and Trump’s accounts continued buying and selling securities. CNBC based its estimate on the minimum and maximum values of his year-end 2025 holdings and subsequent share-price changes.
The White House says outside financial institutions manage the portfolio using computer-based models that can generate trades automatically, without Trump selecting individual transactions. CBS News separately reported that Trump has not placed his assets in a blind trust.
“Laws are like spiders’ webs; the big flies get through, while the little ones are caught.”
— Honoré de Balzac, The Firm of Nucingen (1838)
Scandal is The Intellectualist’s series on political misconduct, institutional failure, elite impunity and the systems that allow powerful people to escape accountability.
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