Oil Market in ‘Race Against Time’ on Hormuz, Morgan Stanley Says

The oil market is in “a race against time” as the factors that combined to restrain price rises from the Iran war stand to come under strain if the Strait of Hormuz stays closed into June, according to Morgan Stanley.

Despite the loss of almost 1 billion barrels, futures have failed to top levels seen in 2022 as the market entered the crisis with buffers, and investors kept expecting the strait to reopen, analysts including Martijn Rats said in a note. In addition, higher crude exports from the US, coupled with slowing imports from China, helped to shield the market from the shock, they said.