Overview
- Iran's Revolutionary Guards seized two cargo ships and fired on a third in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, according to maritime monitors and Iranian statements.
- President Trump extended the ceasefire but ordered the U.S. military to keep blockading Iran's ports, leaving most commercial traffic through the chokepoint at a standstill.
- Iran says it will not reopen the strait under blockade, with parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf calling the naval cordon a violation of the truce.
- Brent crude moved back above $100 a barrel after the attacks and continued restrictions, even as many stock indexes held up in recent trading.
- Asia's cushion is thinning as floating Russian crude has fallen from about 20 million barrels in February to under 5 million, and India protested attacks on its vessels and paused some Gulf dispatches.