Oil markets remain on edge as uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz reopening keeps Brent elevated and energy lawyers on alert

Global oil markets are navigating sustained uncertainty over the status of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which a significant share of the world's seaborne crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) passes. As of early August 2026, Brent crude oil prices climbed approximately $1 on 7 August on uncertainty over how and when the strait might reopen following the Iran conflict, and a Reuters morning markets update on 10 August described the strait as suddenly being framed as 'irrelevant' to the United States, reflecting shifting geopolitical signals. Separately, Yemen's Houthi forces attacked a Saudi refinery facility around the same period, adding a further layer of physical infrastructure risk to an already strained regional supply picture. A fire at Russia's Ilsky oil refinery, following a Ukrainian drone attack, was reported around the same time, underlining the breadth of infrastructure disruption affecting global energy supply chains. For energy lawyers, prolonged Strait of Hormuz disruption has direct contractual implications across commodity trading, shipping, and project finance. Force majeure (a contractual clause excusing performance because of extraordinary events outside a party's control) clauses in long-term supply agreements, LNG sale and purchase agreements, and marine insurance contracts all become live issues when a key transit chokepoint is uncertain. English law governs a large proportion of international commodity and shipping contracts, placing London practices at the centre of any legal analysis arising from supply disruption.