The Strait of Hormuz remains closed as Trump pushes US allies to help open the water lock. Here’s what you need to know.

I The Strait of Hormuzthe Persian Gulf waterway, which serves as the main artery for oil exports to the world, remains closed due to the Iran war. it continues.

The passage of oil tankers and other commercial vessels has come to a standstill in the crisis, raising concerns that a prolonged conflict in the region could hamper global oil supplies, according to economists. Crude prices, which fell below $70 a barrel in the days before the start of military operations on Feb. 28, they have gone up above $100 a barrel for the first time since 2022.

“The combination of escalating conflicts (including Israeli attacks on Iran’s oil depots), the continued disruption of Hormuz and the announcements of production shutdowns indicate that the crisis is unlikely to be resolved anytime soon,” energy analysts with the Eurasia Group, a political risk consultancy, said in a report earlier this month.

Here’s what you need to know about the Strait of Hormuz.

What is the Strait of Hormuz?

An important sea corridor, located on the southern border of Iran, connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. A long and important commercial trade route, the Strait of Hormuz normally allows the movement of about 20% of the world’s oil – about 15 million crude barrels per day – and the export of liquefied natural gas. Experts describe it as the “crushing point” of non-filtering strategies.

The strait — about 100 miles long and about 21 miles wide at its narrowest — allows the world’s largest ships to transport oil and gas from the Middle East to China, Europe and the U.S. Most of that crude comes from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar and Iran.

What happened in the Strait of Hormuz?

The war in Iran brought the passage of oil tankers to a halt. As a result, oil prices Concerns have arisen that a prolonged disruption of crude supplies in the region could significantly increase energy costs, including US gasoline prices.

“It’s closed because nobody dares to go through,” Arne Lohmann Rasmussen, senior analyst at Global Risk Management, a provider of energy market data, told CBS News. “You can be attacked, and you can’t get insurance or it’s too expensive, so you have to wait until the security situation improves.”

“If oil and gas from the road is cut off, that has significant effects on the market,” he added. “Although there is no physical blockade, threats from the Iranians, as well as drone attacks and missiles, mean that the tanks are not going through this problem.”

President Trump has called on other nations to help escort ships in this crisis. In a March 21 social media post, he criticized NATO member states as “cowards” for not sending troops to help open the canal.

“They didn’t want to join the fight to stop a Nuclear Powered Iran,” he wrote on Truth Social. “Now that war is Militarily WON, with very little risk to them, they complain about the high oil prices they are forced to pay, but they don’t want to help open the Strait of Hormuz, an easy military route which is one reason for the high oil prices.”

On March 19, America’s six major allies expressed their “readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage” through the Strait of Hormuz, in a joint statement.

The leaders of the UK, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan did not provide details, but some indicated that they would be willing to participate in an international campaign to protect shipping from the problem once hostilities in the region are over.

How high can oil prices go if the crisis is closed?

Energy experts said an increased conflict in Iran that closes the Strait of Hormuz could keep oil prices above $100 a barrel, pushing up fuel and other energy prices.

As of March 21, a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard – which has risen to $ 120 a barrel since the outbreak of war – cost $ 108.84. Benchmark US crude was at $95.61 per barrel.

The average national gasoline price as of March 20 rose to $3.92 per gallon, up 29 cents from last week and nearly $1 a gallon from Feb. 20, according to AAA.

“Until we see that oil will resume properly in the Strait of Hormuz, upward pressure on fuel prices is likely to continue,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum research at GasBuddy, said in a report. “At the same time, the energy of the year is beginning to strengthen as several states complete the transition to summer fuel, creating a double wind that could continue to drive pump prices higher in the coming weeks.”

Meanwhile, oil prices remain short of their record highs. That came in July 2008, when both Brent and West Texas Intermediate, the US benchmark, reached about $145 per barrel, or about $215 a barrel on an inflation-adjusted basis, according to data from FactSet.

In the long run, some experts say Iran could struggle to permanently block shipping in the Strait of Hormuz as the US and Israel degrade the country’s military and other military capabilities. Blocking Iranian oil from being exported to overseas markets would also severely damage the company’s fragile economy, experts note.

To address such concerns, President Trump on March 3 said that the US International Development Finance Corporation will provide insurance for all ships passing through the Persian Gulf. Mr. Trump also said that the US Navy will escort tanks to The Strait of Hormuzif necessary.

What does President Trump say about the Strait of Hormuz and oil?

In a telephone interview with CBS News on March 9, Mr. Trump said the United States “can do a lot” about the strait and threatened Iran if it blocked the waterway. The president also said, “The war is very, very complete.”

“They shoot everything they have to shoot, and they better not try anything good or it will be the end of that country. … If they do anything bad, that will be the end of Iran and you won’t hear the name again,” he said.

The president also said on March 9 that the strait was open and that ships were entering the strait, but he said he was “still thinking about taking it.”

Speaking later that day to reporters at his Miami-area golf club, Mr. Trump said he does not expect the war to end next week, but “soon”.

The president said Iran will be hit “very hard” if Iran does anything to stop the world’s oil supply, it says: “I will not allow a terrorist regime to take over the world and try to stop the world’s oil supply.”

Mr. Trump reiterated that the US provides political risk insurance for any tankers in the Persian Gulf, and the US can escort tankers on board if needed.

“If they do anything, the price will be incalculable,” the president said of possible Iranian activities against oil tankers.

Are there alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz?

Oil that used to go through the Strait of Hormuz by ship could be exported by other means.

This includes the East-West Pipeline, also known as Petroline, a nearly 750-mile-long pipeline in Saudi Arabia that brings oil to Red Sea ports. Shipments may also be routed through the Abu Dhabi crude oil pipeline, a roughly 400-mile pipeline in the United Arab Emirates that transports oil to the Gulf of Oman.

However, some such routes can only accommodate a fraction of the volume of oil that normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz every day, according to experts.

David Oxley, chief economist for climate and commodities at Capital Economics, said in a letter to investors: “From the perspective of the energy market, the impact of energy flows from the Middle East will be determined by two important factors: a) how long the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, and; b) the extent to which potential damage to the energy infrastructure in the region suppresses or suppresses energy exports in the future. It resumes.”