Money Grab/Profit from his own market-moving decisions
A Trump account sells up to $1M of Exxon hours before he announces the Iran ceasefire
On April 7, 2026, an investment account in the president’s name sold between $500,001 and $1 million of Exxon Mobil shares. Later that day Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran. Oil fell, and Exxon dropped more than 6% the next morning.
What happened
On April 7, 2026, one of Trump’s investment accounts sold Exxon Mobil shares worth between $500,001 and $1 million. The sale is listed on the president’s financial disclosure, filed in late June 2026. About two and a half hours after the market closed that day, Trump announced a two-week ceasefire in the war with Iran.
Oil prices, which had climbed through the fighting, fell on the news, and Exxon opened at $153.52 on April 8, down 6.5% from its $163.91 close. CBS News, reviewing the filings, found the same accounts had bought Exxon and other major oil stocks on March 2, two days after the war began. They also traded Chevron and ConocoPhillips during the conflict. The accounts executed about 3,600 trades worth $212 million to $695 million in the first quarter alone.
The White House said independent managers make all investment decisions and neither Trump nor his family is involved. CNBC found no evidence of trading on advance knowledge. Trump has not placed his assets in a blind trust, and the president is exempt from the conflict-of-interest law that binds other officials.
Who benefited
Trump’s account avoided the fall that followed the announcement. On a sale of up to $1 million, a 6.5% drop is up to about $65,000 kept. The account had bought oil stocks two days into the war, when prices were rising.
Who wanted something
No counterparty paid for this. The account only had to sell before the announcement, and the announcement was the president’s to make. The disclosure does not say who placed the trade or whether the president knew of it.
Who lost out
Whoever bought the Exxon shares on April 7 did so without knowing a ceasefire was hours away. More broadly, anyone who relies on markets being fair lost out, since the one person who always knows what the president will say next is the president.
Why it matters
Trading on material information the public does not have is illegal for everyone except, in practice, the president. He is exempt from the conflict-of-interest statute and has no blind trust. There is no mechanism to check whether this trade was informed, and the only assurance offered is the White House’s word that outside managers acted alone.