{“headline”:”The Strait of Hormuz is now a line item in your import costs”,”seoTitle”:”Hormuz attacks hit NZ fuel, freight and farm costs”,”standfirst”:”A tanker hit near the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday tore up a fragile US-Iran ceasefire. For New Zealand firms with no domestic refining and no alternative supply route, the geopolitics is already embedded in fuel bills, freight invoices and fertiliser costs.“,”body”:”## The ceasefire just fractured\n\nThe two-week window of optimism is over. A tanker was struck by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday 28 June, damaging its bridge, days after a cargo ship was hit on 26 June. Both attacks followed fresh US and Iranian strikes, marking the worst escalation since the two sides signed an interim peace deal a fortnight earlier.\n\nWorse for shippers, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards are now firing warning shots at vessels that fail to use Iran-approved channels and requiring ships to seek Iranian permits before crossing the strait. Tehran wants to charge transit fees, a long-held ambition now being actively enforced. US Vice President JD Vance was blunt, posting that [“, “sources”:
Sources
- Tensions rise again as US and Iran trade strikes
- ‘Cost shock’: Strait of Hormuz closure hits more than fuel prices – ASB
- War delivers new blow to shipping costs
- Fuel Price Monitoring – 21 May 2026
- The Iran conflict: New Zealand’s economic and merchandise trade data
- Media briefing – Economic Impacts of the Middle East Conflict – 23 April 2026
- Middle East developments Treasury SITREP – 6 March 2026