MANAMA — For millions of families across Asia, the price of cooking fuel, electricity, and even a litre of petrol at the neighbourhood station is quietly tied to a narrow stretch of sea 21 miles wide. The Strait of Hormuz, a waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, carries roughly 20 percent of the world’s petroleum every single day. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, about 17 million barrels per day passed through the strait in 2019.
That is enough oil to power entire economies — and when that flow is disrupted, the impact lands squarely on communities from Manila to Mumbai. The strait is the primary export route for some of the world’s largest oil producers.
Saudi Arabia sends over 7 million barrels per day through it. Iraq ships over 3 million, while Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates each move over 2 million. Iran itself exports over 1 million barrels per day via this same channel.
For Asian nations that rely heavily on Middle Eastern crude — including the Philippines, India, Japan, and South Korea — the Strait of Hormuz is not a distant geopolitical concept. It is a daily economic lifeline.
When the strait gets squeezed
The vulnerability of this chokepoint is not theoretical. In May 2019, a series of attacks on tankers near the strait sent shockwaves through global energy markets. Brent crude, the international benchmark, jumped from around $70 per barrel to over $75 per barrel within days.
That spike, while temporary, translated into higher costs for transport, manufacturing, and household goods across importing countries. For communities in the Philippines, where families already stretch every peso, a five-dollar jump in crude prices can mean a noticeable rise in jeepney fares and LPG cylinder refills.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration has assessed the worst-case scenario: a full closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Such an event, the agency reports, could reduce global oil supply by 17 million barrels per day. The likely result would be crude prices soaring past $150 per barrel.
That is more than double the pre-attack levels of 2019. For developing economies in Asia — many of which have limited strategic reserves and little room to absorb price shocks — the consequences would be severe.
Not just oil — liquefied natural gas too
The strait is equally critical for natural gas. Qatar, a major exporter of liquefied natural gas, sends its product through Hormuz. The country accounts for about 25 percent of global LNG trade.
For countries like Japan and South Korea, which rely heavily on LNG for power generation and home heating, any disruption in the strait would directly affect electricity supply and household energy bills. Closer to home, even the Philippines — a growing LNG importer — could feel the ripple effects as spot prices climb.
The United States maintains a strategic petroleum reserve of about 640 million barrels, as of 2019. That stockpile is designed to cushion the American economy against severe supply shocks. But for most Asian nations, such reserves are far smaller, leaving them more exposed to the volatility of the Hormuz corridor.
A military and commercial crossroads
The strait is also a critical passage for military vessels. The U.S. Fifth Fleet has been based in Bahrain since 1949, underscoring the strategic importance of the waterway to American defense posture in the region. Any escalation in the Persian Gulf — whether from regional conflict, sabotage, or naval incidents — immediately raises the stakes for commercial shipping and insurance rates.
Tanker operators may demand higher premiums, which are ultimately passed on to consumers. For communities across Asia, the Strait of Hormuz is one of those places that rarely makes headlines unless something goes wrong.
But its role in the daily lives of ordinary people is immense. The fuel that powers tricycles in Cebu, the gas that cooks dinner in a Jakarta kitchen, the electricity that lights a home in Bangkok — all of it is, in some measure, connected to that narrow stretch of water. What to watch next is whether the major producers and consumers can diversify transit routes or build larger strategic reserves.
For now, the Strait of Hormuz remains a single point of vulnerability in the global energy system — and for families across the region, its stability is not an abstraction. It is the price of getting through the day.
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