WASHINGTON – On Friday, April 24, 2026, the Trump administration announced new economic sanctions against a significant China-based oil refinery and roughly 40 shipping companies and tankers implicated in the transport of Iranian oil. This action fulfills a previous threat by President Donald Trump to impose secondary sanctions on entities conducting business with Iran, marking an escalation in the administration's campaign to curtail Iran's primary revenue source: oil exports.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed the move, stating that his agency "will continue to constrict the network of vessels, intermediaries and buyers Iran relies on to move its oil to global markets." The sanctions effectively cut off these companies from the U.S. financial system and impose penalties on any entities that engage in business with them.
Among the entities sanctioned is Hengli Petrochemical's facility in Dalian, China, which possesses a processing capacity of approximately 400,000 barrels of crude oil per day. The Treasury Department indicated that Hengli has received Iranian crude oil shipments since 2023, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for the Iranian military. China remains the largest purchaser of Iranian oil, having imported 80% to 90% of Iran's oil before the onset of the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.
These sanctions were announced just weeks before a scheduled meeting between President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping. Concurrently, the U.S. has implemented a physical blockade of the Strait of Hormuz this month, a critical waterway in the Persian Gulf essential for global energy supplies.
Earlier in April, Secretary Bessent's department issued a letter to financial institutions in China, Hong Kong, the UAE, and Oman. The letter threatened secondary sanctions for business dealings with Iran and accused these countries of facilitating illicit Iranian financial activities. Bessent previously stated on April 15 that the administration had informed countries that "if you are buying Iranian oil, that if Iranian money is sitting in your banks, we are now willing to apply secondary sanctions, which is a very stern measure."
Secretary Bessent was nominated by President-elect Donald Trump on November 22, 2024, to serve as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury in his second administration. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on January 27, 2025, by a 68-29 vote, and sworn into office on January 28, 2025. Bessent has been actively involved in the administration's economic policy, including testifying before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government on April 22, 2026, regarding the Fiscal Year 2027 President's Budget request for the Treasury.