Geopolitics Alpha

Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?

Published . Updated .

Covered by 2 outlets: Yahoo News Singapore, euronews.com.

Key takeaways

  • A new report commissioned by Greenpeace Germany found that oil companies earned €36 billion in additional margins from the fallout of the US-Iran conflict between March 1 and October 19.
  • Exposed: USO, XLE, BWET, ITA, VGK
  • Market reaction: price tracking starts with the next trading session.

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Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?

A new report commissioned by Greenpeace Germany found that oil companies earned €36 billion in additional margins from the fallout of the US-Iran conflict between March 1 and October 19. Can Europe tax these profits to help ease rising energy bills? #EuXl

Directly affected

  • No company is named in this report.

Indirectly affected

  • USO United States Oil Fund

    United States Oil Fund: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story.

  • XLE Energy Select Sector SPDR

    Energy Select Sector SPDR: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story.

  • BWET Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF

    Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF: it tracks tanker freight rates. Linked by “iran” (tanker shipping) in this story.

  • ITA iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF

    iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF: it holds defense and aerospace contractors. Linked by “iran” (defense) in this story.

  • VGK Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF

    Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF holds stocks listed in Europe, which this story is about (“eu”).

  • EWG iShares MSCI Germany ETF

    iShares MSCI Germany ETF holds stocks listed in Germany, which this story is about (“germany”).

  • XOM ExxonMobil Holdings

    ExxonMobil Holdings (petroleum refining): oil producers' profits rise and fall with crude prices. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story.

  • CVX Chevron

    Chevron (petroleum refining): oil producers' profits rise and fall with crude prices. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story.

Price reaction, T-5 to T+3

TickerT-5T-3T-1T0T+1T+2T+3
USO+15.71%+7.84%baseafter closeafter closeafter closeafter close
XLE+8.14%+5.85%baseafter closeafter closeafter closeafter close
BWET+32.30%+28.62%baseafter closeafter closeafter closeafter close
ITA+0.76%+0.87%baseafter closeafter closeafter closeafter close
VGK-2.35%-2.42%baseafter closeafter closeafter closeafter close
EWGNo price data for this ticker———————
XOM+8.08%+6.08%baseafter closeafter closeafter closeafter close
CVX+6.66%+5.01%baseafter closeafter closeafter closeafter close

Closing-price change versus T-1, the last close before the story. T0 to T+3 fill in after each market close. Prices: Alpaca IEX.

Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis? Yahoo News Singapore

Source: Yahoo News Singapore

United States Oil Fund (USO) since this story, compared with the market

CompanyWhenMoveStatus
Amplify Commodity Trust (BWET)three days earlier+28.62%final price
Amplify Commodity Trust (BWET)five days earlier+32.30%final price
Chevron (CVX)three days earlier+5.01%final price
Chevron (CVX)five days earlier+6.66%final price
IShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA)three days earlier+0.87%final price
IShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA)five days earlier+0.76%final price
United States Oil Fund (USO)three days earlier+7.84%final price
United States Oil Fund (USO)five days earlier+15.71%final price
Vanguard Intl Equity Index F (VGK)three days earlier-2.42%final price
Vanguard Intl Equity Index F (VGK)five days earlier-2.35%final price
Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE)three days earlier+5.85%final price
Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE)five days earlier+8.14%final price
ExxonMobil Holdings (XOM)three days earlier+6.08%final price
ExxonMobil Holdings (XOM)five days earlier+8.08%final price

Trades by members of Congress and officials in the stocks in this story

Public disclosure filings, not a recommendation. The filing link is the source document. News use of these reports still sits under 5 U.S.C. § 13107(c).

Companies in energy around United States Oil Fund (USO)

The side that tends to collect

  • XOM ExxonMobil Holdings

    For “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?,” ExxonMobil Holdings (XOM) tends to benefit, medium confidence. Reason on file: ExxonMobil Holdings (petroleum refining): oil producers' profits rise and fall with crude prices. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story

  • CVX Chevron

    Chevron (CVX) tends to benefit, medium confidence in the 5 Nov 2026 story “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?.” Reason on file: Chevron (petroleum refining): oil producers' profits rise and fall with crude prices. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story

  • OXY Occidental Petroleum

    In “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?,” Occidental Petroleum (OXY) tends to benefit, medium confidence. Reason on file: Occidental Petroleum (crude petroleum and natural gas): oil producers' profits rise and fall with crude prices. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story

No up or down call on file

  • USO United States Oil Fund

    In “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?,” United States Oil Fund (USO) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence. Reason on file: United States Oil Fund: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story

  • XLE Select Sector Spdr Tr

    For “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?,” Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence. Reason on file: Energy Select Sector SPDR: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story

  • BWET Amplify Commodity Trust

    For “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?,” Amplify Commodity Trust (BWET) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence. Reason on file: Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF: it tracks tanker freight rates. Linked by “iran” (tanker shipping) in this story

  • ITA IShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF

    For “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?,” IShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence. Reason on file: iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF: it holds defense and aerospace contractors. Linked by “iran” (defense) in this story

How energy news reaches United States Oil Fund (USO)

United States Oil Fund (USO) is the company in “Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?,” the 5 Nov 2026 Energy story.

What ties United States Oil Fund (USO) to the headline is this: United States Oil Fund: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story

A second company, Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE), is listed for a different reason: Energy Select Sector SPDR: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story

The price range for United States Oil Fund (USO), and the dates in the story

BWET traded between 788.51 and 1047.07 across 17 sessions. The latest close on file is 907.20. USO traded between 142.51 and 171.80 across 20 sessions. The latest close on file is 158.17. XLE traded between 63.05 and 70.15 across 20 sessions. The latest close on file is 66.70.

How strong the case is around United States Oil Fund (USO)

54 out of 100

“Oil giants cash in on the US-Iran conflict. Can an EU-wide tax on oil profits ease the energy crisis?” scores 54 out of 100. The score uses 2 sources, and 8 linked companies.