Top finance officials from the world's seven wealthiest nations gathered in Paris on May 18–19, 2026, for an urgent two-day summit aimed at containing the widening economic shock triggered by the war in Iran. The meeting, hosted by French Finance Minister Roland Lescure, brought together G7 finance ministers and central bank governors alongside representatives from Gulf states, Brazil, Kenya, and Ukraine — reflecting the truly global scale of the crisis.

Oil Above $100 and a Bond Market Under Pressure

The Iran conflict has sent global energy prices soaring, with oil trading well above $100 per barrel as Iran's control over large sections of the Strait of Hormuz — through which roughly 20% of the world's oil normally passes — continues to disrupt seaborne trade. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global oil inventories drew by 129 million barrels in March and a further 117 million barrels in April, the fastest depletion on record.

The energy shock has spilled directly into global bond markets. Yields on 30-year U.S. Treasuries climbed to their highest levels in nearly a year, while UK gilt yields hit their highest since 1998. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva issued a stark warning: "When oil prices hover above $100 and there is already impact of this war baked in, inevitably there would be a response." The IMF has warned that continued disruptions risk slowing global growth, stoking inflation, and raising the spectre of a global recession. For the IMF's latest economic outlook, visit imf.org.

Sanctions at the Centre of G7 Talks

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made tightening sanctions on Iran a top priority heading into the summit. "We call upon all our G7 and indeed all of our allies and the rest of the world to follow the sanctions regime, so that we can crack down on the illicit finance that is fuelling the Iranian war machine," Bessent said. The push comes despite tension within the bloc, as European officials pushed back against earlier U.S. decisions to grant sanctions exemptions on Russian crude oil purchases. European Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis was direct: "Now is not the time to release sanctions pressure against Russia."

Vulnerable Nations and Food Security Concerns

France used the expanded format of the summit — which included Gulf states, Kenya, Brazil, and Ukraine — to spotlight the disproportionate burden falling on developing economies. French Finance Minister Lescure specifically pointed to a looming fertilizer shortage as a critical secondary threat, warning that rising diesel costs driven by the Strait of Hormuz blockade have already sparked social unrest in Kenya, where diesel prices jumped 50% in recent weeks. "We agree on the fact that the IMF and the World Bank have to step up their game for those countries most vulnerable to the impact of the Middle East conflict," Lescure said.

Critical Minerals and Ukraine Also on the Table

Beyond Iran, G7 ministers addressed two additional structural challenges. First, critical mineral supply chains — G7 governments are accelerating coordination to reduce dependency on China, which dominates supplies essential for electric vehicles, renewable energy, and defence systems. Lescure called for stronger market monitoring and joint projects to ensure "no country can ever again have a monopoly" over such materials. Second, Ukraine's ongoing financial needs remained firmly on the agenda, with Lescure emphasising that G7 allies must reach consensus that "Ukraine needs to be supported, and Russia shouldn't be a winner of that conflict."

What Comes Next

The Paris summit signals that the G7 is trying to reassert the value of multilateral cooperation at a moment when that cooperation has been severely tested by U.S. tariff policy and geopolitical fragmentation. Whether coordinated sanctions can meaningfully restrict Iran's war funding — and whether the IMF and World Bank can mobilise fast enough to shield the most vulnerable economies — will define the coming weeks. With oil prices, bond yields, and food costs all elevated simultaneously, the window for effective collective action is narrowing.