Trump: “Markets will normalize in a short time… oil prices will fall”

U.S. President Donald Trump said on the 11th (local time) that “we have taken down Iran’s leadership twice.”

Speaking during a visit to Thermo Fisher Scientific, a pharmaceutical company in Cincinnati, Ohio, Trump said, “We have taken down their leadership twice, including their navy and every form of military,” reiterating the claim.

He added, “Now they have a new leadership that has emerged,” and said, “Let’s see what happens to them.”

Trump has previously said that through the anti-Iran military offensive, Operation “Magnificent Fury,” which began on the 28th of last month, he eliminated Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.

However, while again claiming he had taken down the leadership twice, he did not give details on whether there were additional strikes beyond the removal of Khamenei.

Trump described the military operation using the term “excursion.” The word refers to a short trip or briefly doing something else.

He said, “This is an excursion that will get us out of war, and for them it will be a war.”

On the economic situation, he said, “The markets are holding up well,” adding, “I expected a bit of a hit, but it was probably less than I thought.”

He went on to say, “And it will return to normal in a fairly short time,” adding, “Prices are falling very sharply. Oil prices will come down as well.”

Regarding the Strait of Hormuz, he said, “So far we have attacked 28 mine-laying vessels.”

He was describing the military operation as taking place as Iran effectively blockades the strait and international crude oil prices surge.

Shin Hyun-bo, Hankyung.com reporter greaterfool@hankyung.com