Oil prices climbed to a one-month high after President Donald Trump threatened to strike Iran’s power plants and bridges unless Tehran returns to negotiations. Brent crude settled at $84.73 a barrel on Tuesday, while US WTI closed at $79.34, Reuters reported.

For India, the escalation is more than a distant headline. The government says about 70% of India’s crude imports are now routed outside the Strait of Hormuz, but LPG remains more exposed. India imports about 60% of its LPG consumption, and around 90% of those LPG imports pass through the strait.

What Trump said

In a Fox News interview on Tuesday, Trump warned that US strikes on Iran would intensify. "Next week comes the power plants. Next week comes the bridges. We're going to knock out all their power plants. We're going to knock out all their bridges unless they get to the table and negotiate," he said, according to CNN.

The threat came as US Central Command said it launched a fresh wave of strikes against Iran at 6 a.m. ET Wednesday, aimed at degrading Iranian capabilities used to attack commercial shipping in the strait, CNBC reported. It marked a fourth consecutive night of strikes since the collapse of a June 17 memorandum of understanding between the two sides.

Why oil markets are reacting

The US reimposed a naval blockade of Iranian ports at 4 p.m. ET Tuesday, roughly 11:30 p.m. in Iran, according to CNN. Trump also dropped a proposed 20 per cent toll on cargo passing through Hormuz after Gulf nations objected, offering trade and investment deals instead.

Crude had already surged more than 4 per cent in Asian trade earlier, with Brent topping $79 a barrel after a weekend of intense US strikes on Iran and Iranian retaliation against five US allies in the region, per OilPrice.com. That followed a single-day jump of 9.6 per cent, the sharpest since May 2020, according to YourNews, citing Reuters. By Tuesday's close, Brent futures had risen $1.68, or 2 per cent, to $84.98 a barrel and WTI had gained 2.1 per cent to $79.79, the highest level in four weeks.

"The latest escalation, including the U.S. reinstatement of the blockade and Iranian responses, has clearly injected fresh risk into the market," said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade, per YourNews. He noted the Strait of Hormuz itself has not been fully closed, but the risk premium is already showing up in prices.

The human cost of the standoff is also rising. Iranian cruise missiles struck UAE tankers in the strait, killing one Indian crew member and wounding eight others, four seriously, according to the UAE government, as reported by Outlook India.

What it means for India

India imports more than 85 per cent of its overall crude requirement, making it acutely sensitive to any Hormuz disruption. But the picture isn't all downside. The government has said about 70 per cent of India's crude imports are now routed outside the strait, up from roughly 55 per cent earlier, giving refiners more flexibility than in past Gulf crises, according to Outlook India.

Even so, the 60 per cent LPG dependency on Hormuz routes means any prolonged blockade or strikes on Iranian infrastructure could squeeze cooking gas supply chains before crude. TUI has previously reported on how US strikes on Iran raise risks for India's LPG supply, a risk that has only grown since Trump's latest ultimatum.

What happens next

Trump has set a rough one-week clock: talks or more strikes on power plants and bridges. CENTCOM's fresh wave of attacks this week suggests Washington isn't waiting for Tehran's answer. For Indian households already watching petrol pumps and LPG cylinder prices, the coming days will decide whether this stays a market scare or turns into the kind of fuel shock the country saw earlier in 2026.