The Strait of Hormuz remains closed as the oil market hopes the U.S. and Iran will strike a deal that could restore energy shipments.

The Strait of Hormuz remains closed as the oil market hopes the U.S. and Iran will strike a deal that could restore energy shipments.

A few more weeks of the status quo, where most tankers are prevented from crossing the Strait of Hormuz, will push the current crisis into a whole new phase.

By any historical yardstick, the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz should have triggered a full-scale panic across oil and financial markets.

Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has resulted in the loss of nearly a billion barrels of oil with the shortage growing worse every day.