The Australian sharemarket faced a rocky opening to the week after the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow waterway through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply passes — was closed again amid an escalation of tensions in the Middle East. Oil prices jumped on the news, and the ASX was set for an uncertain start as investors weighed the potential for further disruption to global energy flows. The closure underscores the fragility of the world’s energy infrastructure and the outsized influence that geopolitical flashpoints continue to exert on financial markets thousands of kilometres away.
Hormuz Closed Again as Oil Surges and Markets Brace for Turbulence
