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Hormuz crisis disrupts global LPG supply and boosts US exports
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has cut tanker traffic sharply, with daily passages falling from about 54 to roughly 1, while propane prices from the Texas Gulf Coast jumped near 10% early March.
OilPrice reports that attacks on vessels have effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key choke point for Middle East energy shipments, and the disruption is rippling into liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) trade. The outlet says LPG has become a focal point alongside crude oil and natural gas, as Gulf exporters including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar have been cut off.
According to OilPrice, the traditional LPG supply chain across the Middle East is being challenged by rising US exports and worsening geopolitical turmoil. The United States leads global LPG exports by a wide margin, and the strain from the Iran conflict has shown up in slower exports from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, and Iran, with tankers reportedly turned back by the US Navy’s blockade.
OilPrice also points to visible market effects, noting that about 54 oil, chemical, and LPG tankers passed through Hormuz daily before the war. During early March, LPG-linked propane prices from the Texas Gulf Coast rose to almost 10% as supply tightened, and by late May traffic had plummeted to an average of roughly 1.
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