Shipping and energy chokepoints
The U.S. has ordered a naval blockade of maritime traffic to and from Iranian ports, a move that has immediately tightened flows through the Strait of Hormuz. ( ). Markets pushed oil above $100 a barrel and some refiners reportedly paid spot premiums as high as $140 while scrambling for deliverable crude. ( ). Simultaneously, drought-driven Panama Canal restrictions are forcing lighter loads or diversions that are tightening global routes and constraining some LNG exports, even as Panama reports continued high-draft transits this fiscal half. ( )
The United States has moved to block maritime traffic to and from Iranian ports, tightening one of the world’s busiest energy corridors within hours. (abc.net.au) United States Central Command said the blockade would begin at midnight Australian eastern standard time on Monday, April 13, covering “all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports.” ABC reported the order as ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz slowed and markets reacted. (abc.net.au) Oil jumped above $100 a barrel after the order, and Bloomberg reported that some refiners and traders paid as much as $140 a barrel for prompt physical cargoes that could be delivered immediately. The scramble was concentrated in the spot market, where buyers compete for actual barrels rather than paper contracts. (indianexpress.com, economictimes.indiatimes.com) The Strait of Hormuz is the narrow outlet from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, and the United States Energy Information Administration said about 20 million barrels a day moved through it in 2024. The agency said that flow equaled about one-fifth of global petroleum liquids consumption and that roughly one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas trade also passed through the strait. (eia.gov) That leaves little room for disruption when tankers are delayed, rerouted, or priced out. The Energy Information Administration said few alternatives exist to move comparable volumes out of the Gulf if the strait is constrained. (eia.gov) At the same time, the Panama Canal is still operating under rules shaped by the drought that cut capacity in 2023 and 2024, forcing some ships to sail lighter or take longer routes. The Financial Express reported those limits have continued to tighten global shipping patterns and have constrained some liquefied natural gas movements. (thefinancialexpress.com.bd) Panama’s own canal authority has been adding booking changes and publishing operating advisories this month, while La Prensa reported more than 6,200 high-draft transits in the fiscal first half. An April 2026 canal operations summary said normal capacity is roughly 36 to 38 vessels a day, depending on vessel mix and restrictions. (prensa.com, pancanal.com) The result is pressure on two separate chokepoints at once: Hormuz for crude and liquefied natural gas leaving the Gulf, and Panama for ships trying to save days between the Atlantic and Pacific. When both routes tighten, cargoes that still move tend to cost more and take longer to secure. (eia.gov, pancanal.com) Saudi Arabia has one partial workaround because its East-West pipeline can move crude to the Red Sea without passing through Hormuz, and ABC reported on April 12 that the line had returned to full capacity after an earlier strike. Even with that route available, the new blockade has already turned shipping access into the immediate question for oil buyers. (abc.net.au)
