Iran Threatens to Close Straight of Hormuz

The channel between Iran and Oman oversees about a third of the world's sea-borne oil supply.

Wondering why oil prices skyrocketed this week? Iran has threatened the West with an ultimatum: sanction our oil exports, and we’ll stop the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz. Most of the crude oil from Saudi Arabia, Iran, the UAE, Kuwait and Iraq passes through the 4-mile-wide shipping channel between Iran and Oman. The warning came three weeks after EU foreign ministers tightened sanctions on the regime over its nuclear activity. Analysts have suggested that if the EU does impose further sanctions, Iran will export more to Russia and China, while countries like Saudi Arabia fill in the gaps for the rest of the world. Meanwhile, Canada’s latest sanctions against Iran, which include a limit on Iranian immigration, may cost the country millions of dollars in investments since migrant investors are not allowed to open Canadian bank accounts.