Trump Orders U.S. Naval Escort and DFC-Backed Insurance for Hormuz Oil Tankers as BTC Tracks Geopolitical Shock

U.S. President Trump on March 4 said the U.S. Navy will escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz and support political risk insurance backed by the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, as conflict escalation in the Middle East pushed oil prices higher, BlockBeats reports. Following the announcement, U.S. crude retreated from above $77 to around $73, while high insurance costs and some tankers avoiding the route continued to weigh on transport efficiency, and analysts noted that if Iran maintains missile, drone or minelaying actions, energy supply chain recovery could take weeks. Rising oil prices are feeding into gasoline prices and inflation expectations, driving foreign capital outflows from Asian markets and pressure on South Korean and Taiwanese semiconductor stocks as investors rotate toward more defensive allocations. In the crypto market, BTC briefly surged from about $65,000 to over $70,000 before a pullback, with the $69,500–$70,500 band remaining a key area of concentrated short positions and liquidity, and the $64,000 level acting as a secondary liquidity zone that could be tested depending on whether upside shorts above $69,000–$69,800 are forced to cover.