Businesses and governments offered cautious optimism over the promised ā albeit temporary ā reopening of the Strait of Hormuz as part of the Iran war truce agreement. The effective closure of the waterway has choked off access to energy and other key global commodities.
More than 800 vessels are still trapped in the Persian Gulf, according to Bloomberg; the shipping giant Maersk said the deal offered some respite, but added, āwe are not making any changes to specific services.ā The agreement should hopefully offer a reprieve, at least, for the the vesselsā staff who have been running short of food and fresh water: āI am, of course, scared,ā one told The Wall Street Journal before the ceasefire.
