FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Market Chatter: Iran Plans Bab el-Mandeb Disruption Through Houthis if US Escalates

By

Iran has privately directed the Yemen-based proxy group, Houthis, to prepare for operations against vessels transiting the Red Sea if the US launches strikes on Iran's electricity network, Reuters reported Thursday, citing three sources.

Senior Iranian officials have weighed the contingency in recent internal talks before passing the message to the Houthis, the sources said. A person familiar with the Houthis' planning said the proxy group has already moved missiles and drones into positions overlooking the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and now needs only a green light before targeting commercial shipping.

A source close to the Houthis said Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel in Yemen will authorize any action involving the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The source said the group could disrupt shipping without advanced weapons.

Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs could not be reached for comment, despite' attempts.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

Related Articles

Oil & Energy

Trump Says Iran Wants to Settle; Sees Oil Falling to $50/bbl Once Situation Stabilizes

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Iran wants to reach a settlement and signaled that the US could either negotiate an agreement or intensify its campaign.Trump made the remarks while speaking at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit."They want to settle so badly. They don't like what we're doing, and they do want to settle. We'll find out whether or not we settle with them...," Trump said.Trump said Iran should have been confronted years ago, arguing previous US administrations failed to act. "It should have been done 47 years ago," he said.Trump said recent US military action has had only a limited impact on oil markets. "A lot of people thought oil would go up to $350 a barrel, and today it's at $79," he said, noting oil traded at about $68/bbl a couple of days earlier.Trump said oil prices rose after the US took military action because Iran failed to comply, but stressed the increase remained well below what many had expected.He added that once the situation stabilizes, oil prices could fall to $50/bbl, signaling that they could go lower as well.

Oil & Energy

US Centcom Says Tanker Violating Iran Naval Blockade Disabled

The US Central Command said Wednesday that military forces disabled a non-compliant oil tanker in ballast attempting to reach an Iranian port while enforcing the naval blockade against Iran."US forces enforced naval blockade measures against Iran, July 15, by disabling an unladen oil tanker attempting to sail toward an Iranian port in the Arabian Gulf," according to Centcom's X post.Centcom said US forces tracked the Curacao-flagged vessel as it transited international waters toward Kharg Island.The vessel ignored repeated warnings before a US aircraft fired Hellfire missiles into its smokestack, leaving it unable to continue. "The ship is no longer transiting to Iran," Centcom said.The US resumed enforcing its naval blockade on vessels traveling to or from Iranian ports and coastal areas at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, according to Centcom.In a separate post on Wednesday, Centcom said that it had launched a second wave of strikes against Iran at 3 p.m. ET.Centcom said US forces redirected two commercial vessels that complied with the blockade, while disabling one non-compliant vessel during the first 24 hours of enforcement.

Oil & Energy

Hormuz Shipping Traffic Ticks Up Despite Escalating Security Risks, Renewed US Naval Blockade

Commercial shipping activity in the Strait of Hormuz increased over the day on Tuesday despite mounting security risks and a renewed US naval blockade targeting Iranian ports.The latest data from MarineTraffic showed 21 confirmed crossings through the Strait on July 14, marking an increase from the previous day when verified vessel transits were pegged at 10."The profile was mostly commercial and low-risk, although nine sanctioned crossings were also observed, five of total crossings Iranian-flagged," MarineTraffic said.Ship movements tilted slightly more towards outbound traffic moving from the Gulf of Oman to the Persian Gulf, the ship tracker said. Laden voyages mostly included tankers carrying crude oil, liquefied petroleum gas, and methanol and dry bulk cargoes such as iron ore.Vessel routing was concentrated on the Iranian route, with only three dark crossings and one International Maritime Organization-route crossing recorded, the data showed. No vessels were recorded using the Omani route.The IMO's daily Strait of Hormuz incident tracker showed three additional confirmed attacks off the Omani coast this week. These incidents bring the total number of confirmed maritime security incidents in the region to 56 as of Wednesday.The IMO tracker provides a daily log of verified strikes on ships attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz since the conflict began, with the earliest incident recorded on March 1.The risks escalated further after the US military resumed its naval blockade of vessels transiting to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas.The slight recovery in traffic comes despite deteriorating regional security conditions.US Central Command resumed the naval blockade of Iranian ports at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday. On Wednesday, US forces redirected two commercial vessels attempting to access Iranian ports within 17 hours of the operation restarting."There are currently more than 20 US Navy warships and hundreds of military aircraft operating across the Middle East," US Centcom said in a post on X.At 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday, US forces launched a second wave of strikes against Iran. The US Centcom said the attacks were launched under Trump's orders.The Strait handles about 20% of global oil exports and remains the key export route for crude and liquefied natural gas shipments from Gulf producers.