Data & charts

The blockade, in numbers

How oil flows, prices and traffic have moved since the crisis began. Every chart includes the underlying data table.

0Mbbl/d
Q1 2026 flow (crude + products)
−30% year on year
$0
Brent crude peak
4-year high
0%
of world seaborne oil trade
0Mbbl
emergency reserves released

Oil flow through the strait collapsed in Q1 2026

Crude oil and petroleum products, million barrels per day, by quarter

View data table
Crude + products through the Strait of Hormuz (Mbbl/d)
QuarterMbbl/d
Q4 202420.1
Q1 202520.4
Q2 202520.5
Q3 202520.6
Q4 202520.7
Q1 202614.6

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration; Bloomberg (May 2026).

Brent crude spiked to a four-year high

Brent spot price, US dollars per barrel, 2026

View data table
Brent crude price (USD/barrel)
PointUSD/bbl
Jan74
Feb76
28 Feb (strikes)79
1 Mar89
8 Mar102
15 Mar (peak)126
Apr118
May109
Jun118

Source: market reporting, Reuters / Bloomberg (2026).

Hormuz vs. bypass capacity

Million barrels per day

View data table
Capacity comparison (Mbbl/d)
RouteMbbl/d
Normal Hormuz flow20
Total bypass pipelines9

Saudi East–West, UAE Fujairah and Iraq Kirkuk–Ceyhan lines combined.

Share of world seaborne oil

Percent transiting the Strait of Hormuz

View data table
World seaborne oil trade
Route%
Via Strait of Hormuz25
Other seaborne routes75

Source: International Energy Agency.

Where Hormuz crude was heading

Approximate share of transiting crude by destination, pre-crisis

View data table
Destination share of Hormuz-transiting crude (%)
Destination%
China47
India19
Japan9
South Korea8
Europe & others17

Asia took the large majority of Gulf crude before the crisis.

Figures are compiled from public sources and rounded for clarity. See the methodology for details.