Trump targets Iran's trade lifelines — here are the countries most exposed

The U.S. announced an "economic D-Day" campaign Monday to isolate Iran from the global economy, threatening penalties against "enablers" that continue doing business with Tehran. The move is part of Washington's bid to sever the trade lifeline that has sustained Tehran's economy through nearly six months of war. Skepticism persists over whether the Trump administration will follow through, but the threat could still put the U.S. on a collision course with a group of governments that account for most of what remains of Iran's foreign trade. China China is the biggest buyer of Iranian oil and serves as a crucial link to the global economy for Tehran, accounting for about 90% of its oil exports, according to the U.S. government. China reported $9.96 billion in bilateral trade with Iran in 2025, excluding the roughly $31.2 billion in unreported Iranian crude oil exports to China that year, according to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Independent Chinese refiners take in the bulk of it, often rebranded as Malaysian or Indonesian crude and settled through intermediaries outside the dollar system, according to Kpler. The U.S. Treasury has sanctioned several of those refineries this year for Iranian oil purchases, while sparing Chinese financial institutions. Beijing has openly opposed U.S. sanctions against Iran, arguing that economic pressure will not resolve the disputes. In May, China ordered domestic firms to disregard U.S. sanctions on five refiners linked to the Iranian oil trade. While Beijing is unlikely to push back directly on Washington's sanctions push, it will "quietly step up compliance" among state banks and oil companies to avoid getting caught in the net, said Dan Wang, China director at Eurasia Group, pointing to “a dichotomy between the official statement and the private practice.” "Chinese authorities care more about dollar access in financing and market entry to the U.S.," she said. The China Connection United Arab Emirates The Emirates, located just 50 miles from Iran across the Persian Gulf, has long been a major trading hub for Iran. The bilateral trade amounted to around $28 billion in 2024, when the Emirates was its largest source of imports, contributing over 30%, according to the World Trade Organization data. The UAE was also Iran's third-largest export destination, making up 12% of its shipments, totaling more than $7 billion. That relationship hit a snag last week as the UAE moved to suspend all trade and financial transactions with Iran, following two ballistic missiles fired toward Emirati territory, one of which targeted UAE-owned tankers. Iran has relied on UAE banks and its financial system to access the world economy through illicit, often murky transactions, and cutting off Iran would require more forceful actions from Emirati authorities to crack down on opaque financial and trading activity, according to U.S.-based think tank The Washington Institute. "The majority of Iran's transshipment, smuggling, and shadow banking activity takes place in Dubai, so Washington must do wh...