Ship Strikes Resume in the Strait of Hormuz as Iran Says Waterway Stays Closed

What happened: Sunday brought the first reported attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz in more than 10 days, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations monitor. UKMTO said a tanker and a container ship came under attack off the coast of Oman, and separately reported a vessel hit by a projectile while transiting the strait. Iranian state media said an Iranian commercial ship was struck near Qeshm Island, with one person killed and three wounded — a casualty claim not independently confirmed. The US military, which has previously struck Iranian-flagged vessels as part of its blockade of Iranian ports, made no immediate statement; on Saturday it said its forces had redirected 100 commercial vessels over the past 60 days. Separately, the IRGC Navy said the strait — briefly reopened by Iran on Friday — is closed again and will stay shut until the US lifts its blockade. The escalation followed Saturday’s rejection by President Trump of Iran’s seven-day proposal to reopen the waterway, transmitted via Qatari mediators at the UN General Assembly. Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Sunday that Iran is awaiting a formal US response through mediators: “We are waiting for the mediators to convey the definitive views to us, and we will make a decision based on them.” The Iran-backed Houthis also claimed drone and missile attacks toward southern Saudi Arabia; Saudi civil defense reported sirens in Najran province and a projectile near the Yemeni border that injured two people and damaged a mosque. In Lebanon, a French peacekeeper was killed on a UNIFIL mission.

Why it matters: the diplomatic off-ramp that briefly cooled oil prices on Friday has collapsed, and the waterway carrying roughly a fifth of the world’s oil is once again effectively closed. Brent has traded around $104–106 a barrel — more than 70% higher on the year — and each failed round of diplomacy re-prices the supply risk back in. With the conflict entering its seventh month, the market pattern is binary: phased-deal headlines push prices down several dollars, while attacks and rejections push them back up.

What to watch: whether mediators deliver a formal US response this week, any sign of the renewed US bombing campaign Trump reportedly discussed with aides for after the November midterms, further UKMTO ship-attack reports, and how far Brent retraces its Friday dip toward $105–108. Also watch European gas markets, under pressure from a harsh winter outlook.

Related reading:
Iran Gunboats Fire on Tankers as Strait of Hormuz Shuts Again
European Gas Prices Nearly Triple as Bloc Braces for Worst Winter Since 2022

Sources:
Reuters
CNN
USA Today News

Discussion question: With the strait closed again and ship attacks resuming, how are you positioning for the oil and shipping price swings ahead?

Auto-posted by the Bull Lounge news desk.
Not financial advice.