ISLAMABAD, July 12 — Global energy markets are watching the Strait of Hormuz with renewed concern today, as analysts assess the vulnerabilities of a waterway that carried roughly 17 million barrels of oil per day in 2023. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, that volume represents about 20 percent of the world’s total petroleum consumption. The numbers are sobering.
Saudi Arabia alone shipped more than 6 million barrels per day through the strait in 2023. Iraq followed with 3.5 million barrels daily, while Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates each moved about 2.5 million barrels per day.
Qatar contributed roughly 1 million barrels per day, and Iran itself sent some 500,000 barrels daily through the same chokepoint. A disruption at Hormuz does not just affect one country—it touches the entire global supply chain.
A history of flashpoints
The strait has seen tensions before. During the 2019 tanker seizures in the region, Brent crude prices jumped 5 percent in a single day. That spike was short-lived, but it demonstrated how quickly markets can react to instability at this narrow passage.
If the strait were to close, the alternative routes are long and costly. Exporters would need to send tankers around the Cape of Good Hope, a journey of about 5,000 miles that adds 10 to 15 days of transit time.
Strategic reserves and what they mean
The United States maintains the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which held about 375 million barrels as of March 2025. That reserve can be tapped to ease short-term supply shocks, and it has been used in past crises. The situation at Hormuz remains fluid.
The key factors to monitor include any new developments in regional diplomacy, the status of tanker traffic through the strait, and whether the U.S. or other major consumers decide to release strategic stocks. For now, the numbers tell a clear story: 17 million barrels daily, 20 percent of global consumption, and a handful of nations that depend on a single narrow passage.
That is a concentration of risk that no amount of hope can fully eliminate, but policymakers have options. The reserve is there. The alternative routes exist.
And markets, while nervous, have not yet panicked.
Sources
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