IEA Warns 2026 Oil Supply Gap to Widen as Gulf Flows Stay Disrupted
🛢️ ENERGY — The IEA is now pricing in the blockade as permanent, not temporary. 📌 LOOK CLOSER: "Delayed return" is diplomatic language for no visible exit. With Hormuz at seven transits, E/W pipeline down, and Bab el-Mandeb encircled, IEA modeling a widening gap shifts oil markets from crisis-pricing to structural-repricing. European import terminals and Asian refiners now face a floor, not a spike. Insurance and hedging contracts reset accordingly.
