Trumps new tolling scheme in Strait of Hormuz could generate nearly $200B annually

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s proposed 20% toll on commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz could generate nearly $200 billion annually in revenue — a windfall large enough to cover about half of the federal civilian payroll.Trump announced the concept on Monday — after months of rejecting Iran’s plan for post-war tolls — in what could amount to a negotiating tactic.Brandon Daniels, CEO of supply chain AI company Exiger, told The Post that the annual volume of international commerce in the strait was between $880 billion and $970 billion before the war.That would translate into Trump tolls of between $176 billion and $194 billion — an amount that would, if enacted, cover the compensation for about 1 million or more federal civilian workers.“I don’t think that there is a real mechanism for us to charge that toll at this moment, and how we would charge that toll is still an open question of both economic policy and international law,” said Daniels.The US government has announced no concrete steps toward imposing the levy.Trump’s abrupt announcement is a break from his longstanding position that the strait should be toll-free after the conflict ends with Tehran — so much so that administration insiders believe he’s establishing space to negotiate with the Islamic Republic, which wants to impose its own fees.“It’s a negotiation,” a source close to Trump told The Post.

“It’s real until there’s an alternative arrangement.”Trump has for months been attempting to broker an end to the Iran war that started Feb.28.

A cease-fire took effect on April 7 and was followed by a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that Trump signed June 17 calling for a 60-day toll-free reopening of the strait while nuclear talks continue.Trump ordered airstrikes against Iran last Wednesday and declared both the cease-fire and MOU “over” — in what some advisers dubbed “Operation Bitch Slap.”The latest tensions emerged from disagreement over ...