Explainer

What’s at Stake for the Oil Market If Iran Crisis Escalates

Iran's main oil export terminal at Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf.Photographer: Fatemeh Bahrami/Getty Images/Anadolu

Oil traders are watching for any escalation of civil unrest in Iran that could disrupt crude production or prompt the government to block a critical shipping route used by several major Middle Eastern energy exporters.

The mass protests, triggered by a currency crisisBloomberg Terminal and economic collapse, pose the biggest threat to the rulers of the Islamic Republic in decades and have been met with a deadly crackdown.