Iran

The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow corridor between Iran and Oman through which roughly one-fifth of the world's seaborne oil trade ordinarily passes, has gone almost quiet.

The number that matters most from the Bank of England's latest meeting is not 3.75, it is three. Three members of the Monetary Policy Committee voted against holding Bank Rate, preferring an immediate rise.

Shell posted a quarterly profit of $9.84 billion, more than double the $4.26 billion recorded in the same period a year earlier, making it the company's second-highest quarter on record. The figures came out of Shell's second-quarter results webcast on 30 July 2026.

Trump posted it at 11:14 pm on 13 July 2026. According to his Truth Social post, the United States would henceforth be known as "THE GUARDIAN OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT" and would collect a 20% reimbursement fee on all cargo shipped through it. No treaty. No congressional authorisation.

President Donald Trump dropped his proposed 20 per cent transit levy on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz on 14 July 2026, replacing it with a promise of Gulf state trade and investment flows into the United States.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a formal strike directive on March 31, 2026, naming 18 American and Gulf-based technology companies as legitimate military targets across the Middle East.

Trump said he had a plan to destroy every bridge and power plant in Iran. Twelve hours later, he announced a ceasefire. Analysts are asking whether the pattern has a name.

Iran has rejected a Pakistan-brokered 45-day ceasefire proposal and President Trump's Tuesday night deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, insisting any agreement must be permanent.