The United States government is considering new economic pressure measures against Iran as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced an unprecedented campaign to weaken Tehran.
The news agency Bloomberg reported that Tehran already faces thousands of existing sanctions and severe financial restrictions. This established trade barrier raises doubts among financial observers regarding how effective any additional measures can prove in practice.
A major challenge facing the administration of President Donald Trump is that available financial options carry substantial economic and political risks. Several proposed actions could harm the domestic economy of the United States and strain diplomatic relations with key international partners.
Chris Kennedy, an analyst at Bloomberg Economics, said that unless the president decides to prioritize addressing the Iranian threat over all other foreign policy matters, specifically relations with China, any action taken is unlikely to alter calculations in Tehran fundamentally.
Targeting Chinese oil purchases
China serves as the primary buyer of Iranian crude oil, importing more than 90 percent of the nation's total petroleum exports. Because of this massive trade volume, one primary option under consideration in Washington is imposing new sanctions on commercial companies and financial institutions that facilitate oil shipments.
United States authorities have previously targeted several small Chinese refining operations while refraining from taking action against major state-owned Chinese banks. Targeting large financial institutions could significantly escalate bilateral tensions with Beijing at a sensitive time.
The potential diplomatic friction comes as Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping prepare for an expected bilateral meeting. Furthermore, restricting Iranian petroleum exports risks driving up global energy prices by suddenly removing substantial quantities of cheaper crude oil from the international market.
Pressure on currency exchanges
A second strategy focuses on currency exchanges and foreign financial intermediaries that facilitate money transfers into Iran. After completing oil sales, officials in Tehran require specialized networks to convert revenue, which is frequently collected in Chinese yuan, into other currencies that can be used internationally.
American regulatory agencies have already sanctioned a selection of these financial entities, accusing them of helping to move billions of dollars on behalf of Iranian interests. However, economic experts note that Iran has established alternative money transfer systems over many years, which could limit the overall impact of renewed exchange sanctions.
Secondary sanctions on trade partners
Washington is also evaluating the expansion of secondary sanctions, which are enforcement tools designed to penalise third-country companies or banks that maintain commercial relations with Iran. This approach forces overseas businesses to choose between trading with a targeted nation or maintaining access to the United States financial system.
The United States previously deployed a similar secondary sanctions framework against North Korea in 2017. Implementing this policy against Iran would affect major global economies including Russia and China, as well as regional trading partners such as Turkey that maintain strong commercial ties with Tehran.
Donald Trump has previously raised the possibility of imposing 25 percent tariffs on countries that continue to trade with Tehran. However, the president has not yet implemented that tariff measure.
Seizure of Iranian government assets
A fourth measure involves the outright seizure of Iranian government assets currently held within United States legal jurisdiction. To date, most American regulatory actions against state assets have been limited to freezing funds rather than seizing property.
Moving from asset freezing to permanent confiscation would represent a far more aggressive stance by Washington, though it presents complex legal and diplomatic hurdles. Additionally, a large portion of Iranian wealth overseas is held in third-party countries, requiring direct cooperation from foreign governments to execute seizures.
Sanctions against the shadow fleet
Finally, American officials are examining stricter interventions against the shadow fleet of commercial tankers that Iran relies upon to transport crude oil worldwide. The shadow fleet consists of older or obscurely registered vessels that operate outside standard maritime tracking systems to evade international trade controls.
Previous United States sanctions against maritime trade focused primarily on individual ships and specific shipping managers. The proposed next phase would broaden enforcement to include corporate entities, port facilities, oil storage terminals, and supporting maritime infrastructure across the Iranian export supply chain.
While taking aim at maritime infrastructure would increase pressure on the Iranian economy, analysts remain uncertain whether the strategy can force a fundamental change in government policy while Tehran retains access to alternative trade networks and financial channels.
