Hormuz Strait navigation prohibited, freight rates may further increase.

According to a report from Xinhua News Agency on March 1st, an unauthorized oil tanker was hit while attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced on the evening of February 28th that all ships were banned from passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Real-time data from the International Oil Tanker Traffic Monitoring System shows that the speeds of oil tankers in the waters surrounding the Strait of Hormuz have generally dropped to zero, and a large number of ships have stopped sailing to seek refuge. The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea, and is a crucial route for the export of crude oil from Middle Eastern oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Approximately one-fifth of the global oil transportation volume is transported through this strait. Several shipping researchers have indicated that the current situation in the Middle East is rapidly deteriorating, which will lead to further increases in shipping prices, with particular attention to oil shipping prices.