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The 8 April ceasefire announcement and parallel discussions around a 45-day truce have not resolved the Strait of Hormuz disruption. They have, for now, capped the worst-case scenario, but tanker traffic remains at a fraction of normal levels and Iran's demand for transit fees signals a structural shift, not a temporary one.
What began as a regional conflict has become a global energy shock, and the question for markets is no longer whether Hormuz was disrupted, but how permanently the disruption changes the pricing floor for oil.
Key takeaways
- Around 20 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil and petroleum products normally pass through the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman, equal to about one-fifth of global oil consumption and roughly 30% of global seaborne oil trade.
- This is a flow shock, not an inventory problem. Oil markets depend on continuous throughput, not static storage.
- If the disruption persists beyond a few weeks, Brent could shift from a short-term spike to a broader price shock, with stagflation risk.
- Tanker traffic through the strait fell from around 135 ships per day to fewer than 15 at the peak of disruption, a reduction of approximately 85%, with more than 150 vessels anchored, diverted, or delayed.
- A two-week ceasefire was announced on 8 April, with 45-day truce negotiations under way. Iran has separately signalled a demand for transit fees on vessels using the strait, which, if formalised, would represent a permanent geopolitical floor on energy costs.
- Markets have begun rotating away from growth and technology exposure toward energy and defence names, reflecting a view that elevated oil is becoming a structural cost rather than a temporary risk premium.
The world’s most critical oil chokepoint
The Strait of Hormuz handles roughly 20 million barrels per day of oil and petroleum products, equal to about 20% of global oil consumption and around 30% of global seaborne oil trade. With global oil demand near 104 million bpd and spare capacity limited, the market was already tightly balanced before the latest escalation.
The strait is also a critical corridor for liquefied natural gas. Around 290 million cubic metres of LNG transited the route each day on average in 2024, representing roughly 20% of global LNG trade, with Asian markets the main destination.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has described Hormuz as the world’s most important oil transit chokepoint, noting that even partial interruptions may trigger outsized price moves. Brent crude has moved above US$100 a barrel, reflecting both physical tightness and a rising geopolitical risk premium.
Tankers idle as flows slow
Shipping and insurance data now point to strain in real time. More than 85 large crude carriers are reported to be stranded in the Persian Gulf, while more than 150 vessels have been anchored, diverted or delayed as operators reassess safety and insurance cover. That would leave an estimated 120 million to 150 million barrels of crude sitting idle at sea.
Those volumes represent only six to seven days of normal Hormuz throughput, or a little more than one day of global oil consumption.
Updated shipping and insurance data now confirm more than 150 vessels have been anchored, diverted, or delayed, up from the 85 initially reported. The 1.3 days of global consumption coverage from idle crude remains the binding constraint: this is a flow shock, not a storage problem, and the ceasefire has not yet translated into meaningfully restored throughput.
A market built on flow, not storage
Oil markets function on continuous movement. Refineries, petrochemical plants and global supply chains are calibrated to steady deliveries along predictable sea lanes. When flows through a chokepoint that carries roughly one-fifth of global oil consumption and around 30% of global seaborne oil trade are interrupted, the system can move from equilibrium to deficit within days.
Spare production capacity, largely concentrated within OPEC, is estimated at only 3 million to 5 million bpd. That falls well short of the volumes at risk if Hormuz flows are severely disrupted.
Oil market analysis
How long do idle tankers last?
135M idle barrels — days of cover against each demand benchmark
vs. Strait of Hormuz daily flow (20M bbl/day)
vs. Global oil consumption (104M bbl/day)
vs. US Strategic Petroleum Reserve release (1M bbl/day)
135M
idle barrels on tankers (midpoint of 120–150M range)
~33%
of daily Hormuz flow that is idle storage, not transit
<31 hrs
is all idle storage against global daily consumption
Inflation risks and macro spillovers
The inflationary impact of an oil shock typically arrives in waves. Higher fuel and energy prices may lift headline inflation quickly as petrol, diesel and power costs move higher.
Over time, higher energy costs may pass through freight, food, manufacturing and services. If the disruption persists, the combination of elevated inflation and slower growth could raise the risk of a stagflationary environment and leave central banks facing a difficult trade-off.
No easy offset, a system with little slack
What makes the current episode particularly acute is the lack of slack in the global system.
Global supply and demand near 103 million to 104 million bpd leave little spare cushion when a chokepoint handling nearly 20 million bpd, or about one-fifth of global oil consumption, is compromised. Estimated spare capacity of 3 million to 5 million bpd, mostly within OPEC, would cover only a fraction of the volumes at risk.
Alternative routes, including pipelines that bypass Hormuz and rerouted shipping, can only partly offset lost flows, and usually at higher cost and with longer lead times.
Bottom line
Until transit through the Strait of Hormuz is restored and seen as credibly secure, global oil flows are likely to remain impaired and risk premia elevated. For investors, policymakers and corporate decision-makers, the core question is whether oil can move where it needs to go, every day, without interruption.
The recent resilience in AUDUSD, which has seen the pair bounce off and hold stubbornly above the 0.6400 major support level came to a dramatic end in today’s session. Risk aversion, disappointing PMI figures out of China and a hold in rates from the RBA all contributing to a break down in the exchange rate seeing AUDUSD break the recent support levels and hit its lowest level since November 2022. Looking at key levels to watch in AUDUSD the 0.6400 will be key in the short term, this is a major S/R level (as most big figures are in AUDUSD) a retake and hold of this level would cement the recovery in AUDUSD and likely a move higher to re-test the 0.6500 resistance level, however if this level is tested and is confirmed as a new resistance level a further move to the downside to test key support levels is a probability.
These key levels are: Daily trendline support around 0.6320 November 2022 lows 0.6275 Major support at the big 0.6200 figure. Also an RSI under 30, indicating an extreme oversold market, the RSI has been a good indicator of turning points in AUDUSD in the recent past. Key risk events ahead for AUD will be Australian Q2 GDP released on Wednesday, July’s Trade Balance on Thursday and Chinese CPI figures released on Saturday.
AUD traders will need to keep an eye on those key levels over these announcements.
The RBA minutes of their June meeting where another surprise hike had most of the market off side were released today, and they were surprisingly dovish. The board made clear the decision between a hike and hold was finely balanced and seems to suggest further hikes may require a high bar for inflation readings to sway them. AUD reaction was swift with AUDUSD selling off around 50 pips as the sellers finally took charge after a grinding rally upwards in AUD that had made nervous wrecks of the shorts.
The Key level of 0.6800 on the AUDUSD has again come into play, with it being almost impenetrable resistance at the top of the AUDUSD range, now it seems as is quite often the case, turning into major support. Drilling down to the 5 minute chart the buying support at 0.68 is obvious, with a decent bounce and hold of 0.6800 as the RSI reading moved into oversold territory. These technical levels will likely drive price action in todays remaining session, no further news is scheduled for Australia and the US calendar is extremely light after their long weekend.
For short term technical traders of the AUDUSD the 0.6800 level is key. Long above, short below while this level remains a major resistance/support level.
In yesterday’s session, the AUDUSD pair experienced a decline of nearly 1%, erasing the gains it had achieved over the past few days. This retracement arrives as the USD displays signs of renewed strength ahead of an upcoming speech by Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Market participants are eagerly awaiting Powell's remarks for to see if he drops any hints on the Fed’s plans.
As anticipation builds for Powell's speech, scheduled for tomorrow, market observers are on high alert for any indications regarding the trajectory of interest rates. They are particularly keen on understanding whether the Fed's rate hikes are done or if further hikes are on the cards. Additionally, the market will scrutinise the language Powell uses, gauging its hawkishness or dovishness to decode the central bank's future strategies.
These cues will aid in forecasting potential rate cuts once inflation subsides to desired levels. Technically, the AUDUSD pair hit a recent low of 0.63642 on August 17th, marking its lowest point since November 2022. There is considerable downside before finding the next significant support level around 0.62.
On the 1-hour timeframe, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is edging close to oversold conditions, while there appears to be a minor horizontal support level holding price just above 0.64. Furthermore, the recent breach of a short-term diagonal support trend is worth noting. The market will closely monitor whether this trend can be reestablished over the coming days.
Overall, as the USD gains momentum leading up to Powell's speech, his comments will likely steer the pair's immediate movements.
Apple has had a spectacular start to 2023, locking in 7 consecutive positive months and putting in an increase of 52.16% year to date at its peak. However, August so far isn’t looking as healthy. Despite the positive financial performance beating Q3 earnings expectations, Apple shares are down 8.48% for the start of August.
Profit taking after 7 green months may be a factor in the recent decline, so the coming days will be key to see if this is a short-term fall or the beginning of a longer-term downtrend. From a technical perspective, price has fallen through an upward trend line that begun at the start of 2023. Price appears to have landed at a key support & resistance level around $177-179.
This temporary bounce also lines up almost exactly at the 2022 yearly open price of $177.83, which adds more strength to this support level. Holding this support level is critical for the price, as a failure to do so could potentially lead to further declines, with the next support level likely around $155-157. Additionally, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) on the daily chart recently touched an oversold level of 30, followed by a slight bounce.
Traders will be watching to see if the two factors of RSI oversold and price at a key support level will be enough to stall the recent decline and potentially be a pivoting point to send price back north.
World’s largest entertainment company The Waly Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) announced second quarter financial results ended April 1, 2023, after the market close on Wall Street on Wednesday. Company overview Founded: October 16, 1923 Headquarters: Team Disney Building, Walt Disney Studios, Burbank, California, United States Number of employees: 220,000 (2022) Industry: media, entertainment Key people: Mark Parker (chairman), Bob Iger (CEO) The results Walt Disney reported revenue of $21.815 billion for the quarter vs. $21.795 billion expected. Revenues were up by 13% vs. same period last year.
Earnings per share fell slightly short of expectations at $0.93 per share (down by 14% year-over-year) vs. $0.933 per share estimate. Disney+ subscribers fell from 161.8 million to 157.8 million in the quarter. It has now lost 6.4 million subscribers over the last two quarters.
Company commentary "We’re pleased with our accomplishments this quarter, including the improved financial performance of our streaming business, which reflect the strategic changes we’ve been making throughout the company to realign Disney for sustained growth and success," Robert A. Iger, CEO of the company said in a statement. "From movies to television, to sports, news, and our theme parks, we continue to deliver for consumers, while establishing a more efficient, coordinated, and streamlined approach to our operations," he concluded. The stock was down by over -8% on Thursday, trading at around $92.66 a share.
Stock performance 1 month: -8.31% 3 months: -8.31% Year-to-date: +6.42% 1 year: -11.36% Walt Disney price targets Morgan Stanley: $120 Wells Fargo: $147 Deutsche Bank: $135 Barclays: $107 Guggenheim: $130 Citigroup: $130 JP Morgan: $135 Credit Suisse: $133 Bank of America: $135 Walt Disney is the 63 rd largest company in the world with a market cap of $170.34 billion, according to CompaniesMarketCap. You can trade The Waly Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) and many other stocks from the NYSE, NASDAQ, HKEX, ASX, LSE and DE with GO Markets as a Share CFD. Sources: The Waly Disney Company, TradingView, MarketWatch, MetaTrader 5, CompaniesMarketCap, Wikipedia, MarketBeat
Uber Technologies Inc. (NYSE: UBER) announced first quarter results before the market open in the US on Tuesday. World’s largest ridesharing company beat analyst expectations for the quarter, sending the stock price higher. Company overview Founded: March 2009 Headquarters: San Francisco, California, United States Number of employees: 32,800 (2022) Industry: Transportation Key people: Ronald Sugar (Chairman), Dara Khosrowshahi (CEO) The results Uber reported revenue of $8.823 billion (up by 29% vs Q1 2022) vs. $8.703 billion expected.
The company reported loss per share of -$0.08 per share vs. estimate of -$0.087 loss per share. CEO commentary "We significantly accelerated Q1 trip growth to 24% from 19% last quarter, with Mobility trip growth of 32%, as a result of improved earner and consumer engagement,” Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber said in a letter to shareholders. "Looking ahead, we are focused on extending our product, scale and platform advantages to sustain market-leading top and bottom-line growth beyond 2023," Khosrowshahi added. The stock was up +11.55% on Tuesday at $36.53 a share.
Stock performance 1 month: +16.34% 3 months: +18.07% Year-to-date: +47.67% 1 year: +23.92% Uber price targets Wedbush: $44 Needham: $54 RBC Capital: $46 Deutsche Bank: $44 JMP Securities: $55 Wolfe Research: $45 UBS: $48 JP Morgan: $52 Wells Fargo: $53 Uber is the 196 th largest company in the world with a market cap of $73.54 billion, according to CompaniesMarketCap. You can trade Uber Technologies Inc. (NYSE: UBER) and many other stocks from the NYSE, NASDAQ, HKEX, ASX, LSE and DE with GO Markets as a Share CFD. Sources: Uber Technologies Inc., TradingView, MarketWatch, MetaTrader 5, Benzinga, CompaniesMarketCap, Wikipedia