Earth
Strait of Hormuz: Why 24 Miles of Water Sets Your Gas Price
A narrow channel between Iran and Oman is the Persian Gulf's only sea exit, so a huge share of the world's oil has to squeeze through it. The Short shows the two tanker lanes, who depends on that oil, and why pipelines can't replace it. It then ties a sharp drop in traffic in 2026 to jumps in crude and US pump prices.
The numbers
- The strait narrows to 24 miles, with inbound and outbound lanes about 2 miles wide each.
- Around 20 million barrels a day pass through in a normal year, about a fifth of global use.
- China, India, Japan and South Korea take roughly three-quarters of that oil.
- Brent went from about $72 to about $106 a barrel after traffic dropped in March 2026.
- Average US gasoline climbed from $2.96 (26 Feb) to $4.36 a gallon (8 Oct).
Sources cited in the video: US Energy Information Administration · International Energy Agency · AAA · NASA Earth Observatory · Natural Earth
