US Targets 'Teapot' Entities in Bid to Disrupt Iran's Oil Trade
US officials are planning to impose economic sanctions on Iran, following President Donald Trump's claim that Washington would 'hit Iran hard economically'. This comes after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said measures against Tehran would be taken that have 'never been seen'.
The US is targeting independent Chinese refineries, known as 'teapots', which account for a quarter of China's refinery capacity and conduct operations with narrow or even negative profit margins. These teapot entities absorb much of the trade between Iran and China, where over 80% of Iran's shipped oil goes.
The goal is to stem the flow of money accrued by Iran through selling oil, mostly through illegal means. The US aims to penalize these teapot entities for aiding a primary sanctions target, which in this case is Iran.