U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent says in an interview Iran has no crude oil at sea and no Kharg Island loadings since August

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iran currently has no crude oil at sea and that no loadings have been observed at Kharg Island, the country’s main oil export terminal, since August.

Bessent made the remarks Tuesday, October 20, in a live interview on 2WAY’s “The Morning Meeting” with Mark Halperin, Kevin Walling and Larry O’Connor.

“We haven’t seen any loadings at the Iranian oil facility on Kharg Island since August. Iran currently has no oil on the water,” Bessent said. He argued that Washington’s campaign to isolate Iran economically was working and predicted that mounting pressure could push the Iranian economy into a more severe crisis within weeks.

Iran’s seaborne crude exports fell to zero in September, according to tanker-tracking data cited by Reuters. Limited shipments of other petroleum products, including LPG and jet fuel, have nevertheless moved despite the U.S. blockade.

Bessent also said Iranian authorities had threatened people over publishing unofficial currency rates. Iranian police have threatened domestic media, websites and social-media channels with prosecution for publishing exchange rates authorities describe as inflated, amid a sharp fall in the rial.

Speaking about the U.S. economy, Bessent said that aside from what he called a “temporary energy price spike,” most indicators were performing well.