Maths behind Hormuz toll: Is paying Iran for transit cheaper than blockade?
Key takeaways
- Economics of the Strait of Hormuz closure are skewed towards Iran.
- Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) maintains an iron grip over the narrow, strategic waterway, while a corresponding United States naval blockade on Iranian ports has failed to reopen it.
- Before the war began, between 120 and 140 ships travelled through the strait each day, about half of them oil tankers carrying some 20 million barrels of oil between them.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Economics of the Strait of Hormuz closure are skewed towards Iran. Then why won’t the ships just pay Tehran and sail away?
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogle Add Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Vessels sail through the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, May 20, 2026 [Reuters]By Yashraj Sharma Published On 21 May 202621 May 2026Eleven weeks after the start of the Iran war, the Strait of Hormuz has remained closed to naval traffic, bleeding the global economy far beyond the Gulf.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) maintains an iron grip over the narrow, strategic waterway, while a corresponding United States naval blockade on Iranian ports has failed to reopen it.