Trump criticizes oil giants for "earning excessive profits", demanding that they return a portion of their profits and lower gasoline prices.

US President Donald Trump criticized ExxonMobil and Chevron for reaping massive profits amid the Iran war-driven surge in energy prices, saying the two firms "made too much money" and should return a portion of their earnings to the public and lower retail gasoline prices. ExxonMobil and Chevron posted combined second-quarter profits of $29 billion, averaging roughly $318 million per day—more than triple their year-ago results. The Strait of Hormuz crisis lifted oil prices, while refining margins for gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel expanded. US retail gasoline currently averages around $4.10 per gallon, up over 30% from earlier this year before US and Israeli strikes on Iran. Trump said he supports the free enterprise system but cannot accept the oil industry’s current profit levels. He argued that if a company earns 12 times more than the prior year, it should return some profits to the public, and demanded oil companies voluntarily cut consumer costs until the Iran war ends and energy prices retreat. On Monday, Chevron’s stock fell approximately 2%, while ExxonMobil dropped 0.6%. Analysts noted that the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve has hit its lowest level since the early 1980s, and commercial crude inventories are also shrinking. Neither the government nor oil firms have tools to quickly lower oil prices, with reopening the Strait of Hormuz cited as the key to restoring global supply and driving prices down.