President Trump reinstated a US blockade on Iranian vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz and proposed a 20% fee on all other cargo passing through the waterway on 14 July 2026, positioning the US as what the administration described as 'Guardian of the Hormuz Strait.' The policy applies to all non-Iranian shipping nations and will be enforced by the US Navy. The announcement was reported by Bloomberg Markets and Finnhub.
Oil prices surged following the announcement. Brent crude climbed above $82 per barrel and WTI rose past $77 per barrel, representing gains of more than 8% on the session, reversing losses tied to an earlier ceasefire period, according to Oilprice. A separate Finnhub report noted oil prices rose over 5% while gold fell $95 following the announcement.
Brent crude and WTI are the benchmark contracts for globally traded oil; both moved sharply as the blockade and transit fee directly affect flows through the Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately 20% of global oil passes. XLE, the US energy sector ETF, and USO, the US oil fund, are directly exposed to price movements in crude tied to this supply disruption, as reported by Finnhub and Bloomberg Markets.
The blockade reinstatement follows a series of military exchanges between US and Iranian forces dating from 9 July 2026, during which tanker traffic through the strait fell to a single vessel in one session, according to Oilprice. Iranian forces struck two tankers in the strait on 13 July, killing at least one crew member, as reported by Finnhub. Vessel transits had already dropped to approximately 10–12 per week from a prior rate of 30–40, according to Finnhub.
Sources: Bloomberg Markets, Oilprice, OilPrice, news.google.com, investinglive.com, Cnbc TOP, CNBC, Forbes, Guardian Business, BBC Business, CoinTelegraph, Marketwatch TOP, SKY Business, Fortune