Strait of Hormuz Escalation Halts Commercial Shipping, Drives Oil Prices to Multi-Month Highs

Geopolitical tensions in the Strait of Hormuz have escalated, leading to a halt in commercial vessel transit after a series of US airstrikes on Iranian military sites and subsequent Iranian retaliatory attacks on US bases in the region. This disruption has caused Brent crude to surge by 7% this week, reaching a 1.5-month high of $97.62/bbl, and pushed US diesel prices to a record average of $5.85 a gallon, significantly impacting global energy markets and supply chains.