For the Oil Market, the Strait of Hormuz Isn’t Closed

"In price, is knowledge," is an old market saying. So what is the oil price telling us? At less than $90 a barrel, it isn’t screaming shortage. How so amid the Iran war? The release of strategic reserves is helping, as are bypass pipelines around the Strait of Hormuz. China has slashed its oil imports, freeing barrels for everyone else. Commercial stockpiles are, for now, helping. But that’s not the full story.  Perhaps part of the tale is that more oil is flowing out of the Persian Gulf than i