"It Turns Out They Were After My Account" Shocked Reactions... "We're Watching Your Stocks" — The Man Threatening American Retail Investors

Iranian Speaker Taunts U.S. Retail Investors
Mocks Investors Using Fluent Financial Jargon
"Core Commodities Like Oil Are Already Part of the War"

"Enjoy these prices while you can. If the 'blockade' continues, you'll be nostalgic for gasoline at 7,000 won per liter." "We're watching your portfolios."

This was a post by Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, an Iranian hardline politician against the United States and Speaker of the National Assembly, on his X (formerly Twitter) account. Rather than directing criticism at U.S. President Donald Trump, he has drawn attention for employing a unique negotiation tactic by mocking American consumers and individual investors instead.

Galibaf, Speaker of the National Assembly. Photo by AP Yonhap News

On April 20 (local time), Speaker Ghalibaf wrote on his official X account, "Buying and selling oil electronically is like trying to hedge with 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds," adding, "You may want to hedge the stock market decline caused by the Hormuz crisis with 10-year bonds, but oil exists in the real world, while your 10-year bonds are ultimately fake." After the renewed blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and the escalation of conflict between the U.S. and Iran, he mocked individual investors seeking to buy safe assets such as U.S. Treasury bonds in response.

Speaker Ghalibaf has been outspoken in his resistance since the beginning of U.S. and Israeli airstrikes against Iran. He is a former military officer who served in the Aerospace Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and is classified as a hardliner in Iran. Moreover, unlike other Iranian politicians, he has captured the attention of online users by targeting American consumers and investors rather than President Trump for his threats.

On April 13, he posted a photo showing a sharp rise in U.S. gas station prices, commenting, "Enjoy gas prices while they're at $5 (about 7,000 won). If the so-called blockade continues, you'll end up missing today's prices."

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Iranian Parliament's post on X. Screenshot of X

When oil prices surged and the stock market plummeted in the U.S. futures market ahead of the Iranian airstrikes, he stated, "Pre-market news is nothing more than a signal for profit-taking. Essentially, it's a reverse indicator." He went on to give 'investment advice': "Do the opposite. Short when prices go up, buy when prices go down." He also issued threats, saying, "U.S. Treasury bonds are stained with Iranian blood," and "We are monitoring your portfolios. This is your final warning."

Overseas netizens responded in surprise, saying, "I never imagined we'd get investment advice from an Iranian politician," "He seems to use investment terminology better than most American traders," and "Turns out Iran wasn't targeting aircraft carriers, but my brokerage account."

Experts analyzed that Speaker Ghalibaf is aiming for President Trump's 'TACO' (Trump Always Chickens Out) reputation. Jaidon Alkinani, an analyst at the Arab Institute for Prospective Studies, told Al Jazeera, "Iran appears to have identified the pressure points of a businessman-turned-president," adding, "Key commodities like oil have already become part of the war, and Ghalibaf is actively trying to capitalize on this situation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.