Iran’s Oil Revenues Surge Despite U.S. Sanctions, Blockade
TEHRAN -- Iran has transferred $7.5 billion in oil revenues to its central bank, with sales during the first four months of the Iranian year reaching 99% of budget targets despite a U.S. naval blockade and heavy bombing during the U.S.-Israeli terrorist war, Iranian media reported.
The funds, generated from oil sales between March
21 and July 22, are sufficient to cover the government’s foreign-currency expenditures from July through December, according to the Ministry of Petroleum.
The development comes as Washington has launched new economic terrorism dubbed “Operation Economic Outcast,” with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pledging to “sever every economic lifeline” Tehran has left. The U.S. has also imposed an illegal naval blockade on Iran, disrupting oil exports and maritime trade.
Despite these pressures, National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) director Hamid Bovard said Iran’s oil loadings and exports increased by about 10% during the recent U.S.-Israeli war compared with pre-war levels, while oil prices also rose.
Bovard noted that Iran has not officially released production figures for several years, partly to prevent enemies from obtaining accurate statistics.
Iran has also escalated its control over the strategic Strait of Hormuz, blacklisting 45 tankers it says violated its rules for crossing the waterway. The vessels, including some owned by UAE’s ADNOC and Saudi Arabia’s Bahri, could face fines, detention, and cargo confiscation.
The Strait of Hormuz has remained at the center of the war. Under a June memorandum of understanding to end the war, lifting the U.S. naval blockade and reopening the strait were key provisions.
Iranian officials have said Tehran will not fully reopen the waterway until Washington fulfills its commitments, including lifting sanctions and releasing frozen assets.
In a message marking Government Week, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei urged Iran to prioritize domestic production to combat inflation and economic strain, and to begin reducing dollar use in transactions.
He credited the government with maintaining supplies and managing energy during war and blockade.
President Masoud Pezeshkian’s administration has committed to the Leader’s economic and political course, placing inflation, employment, and reducing reliance on the U.S. dollar at the center of its agenda.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi dismissed the sanctions campaign as a diversion from record U.S. debt and rising interest costs, warning that repeating failed policies will bring Washington only further defeat and deepen Iranian resolve.