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A global energy watchdog has warned in a new report that oil stockpiles are “rapidly depleting”, as it urged for a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
“Although the market is projected to return to surplus towards the end of this year, risks remain substantial and the urgency of reopening the Strait has increased, as previously available inventory buffers are rapidly depleting,” the International Energy Agency wrote in a new report.
The agency said that supply is expected to fall by 4.3 mb/d (million barrels per day) in 2026 due to losses in the Middle East and Russia.
It comes despite Donald Trump’s unfounded claim that US forces “totally control the Strait of Hormuz”.
“Nobody else, only us [controls it],” he said. “At some point, maybe they’ll do something and then they get blown away.”
Meanwhile, the US military fired on a Panamanian-flagged ship in the Gulf of Oman yesterday after accusing it of trying to evade the American blockade on Iranian ports.
The military said the vessel had ignored warnings to stop, prompting an American helicopter to fire missiles into the engine room of the M/V Vela Nova, disabling the ship.