
Global markets were mixed on Monday as Brent crude jumped 4.7% to about $79.60 a barrel after the US and Iran both claimed control over the Strait of Hormuz. Wall Street slipped, with the S&P 500 down 0.2% and the Nasdaq down 0.8%, as AI chip stocks such as Micron and Nvidia fell.
US President Donald Trump Monday declared the Strait of Hormuz is “open, and will remain OPEN, with or without Iran”. He said the US would become the “Guardian of the Hormuz Strait”, reinstate what he called the “Iranian blockade”, and seek a 20% reimbursement on all cargo shipped through the waterway to cover security costs.
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Iran’s top joint military command warned that if the war widens, it “will reach all the countries of the region”, blaming the US and its allies for any consequences. The warning comes amid escalating exchanges between Washington and Tehran and rising tensions across the Gulf.
US forces launched fresh strikes Monday morning after Iran attacked a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz, setting it ablaze and leaving one crew member missing. Iran responded with strikes on targets across the Middle East.
Earlier, the US launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran hours after saying it hit dozens of Iranian military sites. The escalation follows Iran’s attacks on US bases across the Gulf and Tehran’s declaration that the Strait of Hormuz is “closed until further notice”. Explosions were also reported in Bandar Abbas.
Which countries have been hit or put on alert?
Sirens sounded in Bahrain, home to the US Fifth Fleet, for the second time in two days, with no immediate damage reported. Kuwait said its air defences were engaging Iranian projectiles after Sunday’s strikes on Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan and Oman.
