Surge in oil trades before Trump announced Iran talks draws scrutiny

Oil futures trading surged minutes before President Trump announced talks with Iran, prompting scrutiny over whether the trades represented insider information. The timing of the spike—occurring just before a market-moving announcement—raises questions about whether traders had advance knowledge of the diplomatic initiative. Such premature trading based on non-public information would constitute illegal insider trading under securities law. The incident highlights how geopolitical announcements can create trading opportunities and the challenge regulators face in monitoring markets ahead of high-level government statements. Investigators will likely examine trading records and communications to determine whether the activity was coincidental or based on leaked information.