Global Leaders Struggle to Contain Surging Gas Prices Amid Oil Supply Disruptions

Stopgap measures like tapping reserves and easing sanctions aren't enough to offset the loss of millions of barrels of oil per day from the Iran war.

Apr. 1, 2026 at 2:20pm

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Global leaders have been scrambling to contain the rising cost of oil and gasoline since the start of the Iran war, which took a record amount of oil off the market when tankers full of crude were stranded in the Persian Gulf and military strikes damaged refineries, pipelines and export terminals. Despite efforts like releasing emergency oil reserves, lifting sanctions, and waiving maritime laws, crude oil has surpassed $100 a barrel and gasoline is selling for $4.06 a gallon on average in the U.S. Experts say the stopgap measures are not adding up to enough oil to replace what's stranded, and the resumption of transit through the Strait of Hormuz is the single most important action to return to stable oil and gas flows.

Why it matters

The disruption to global oil supply caused by the Iran war has led to skyrocketing gas prices that are squeezing consumers and businesses. While governments have taken some steps to try to ease the pain, the scale of the oil shortfall is proving difficult to offset with temporary fixes alone. The crisis highlights the vulnerability of the global energy system to geopolitical conflicts and the challenges in quickly replacing millions of barrels of lost oil production.

The details

Before the war began, roughly 15 million barrels of crude oil and 5 million barrels of oil products passed daily through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, amounting to about 20% of global oil consumption. In addition, some oil producing nations in the Middle East have halted oil production because they can't ship fuel out of the Gulf and their storage tanks are full, taking another 10 million barrels per day off the market. The IEA said the resumption of transit through the Strait of Hormuz is the single most important action to return to stable oil and gas flows. Governments have taken steps like releasing emergency oil reserves, lifting sanctions on Russian and Iranian crude, and temporarily waiving the Jones Act, but experts say these incremental measures are not enough to make up for the massive shortfall.

  • Before the war began, roughly 15 million barrels of crude oil and 5 million barrels of oil products passed daily through the Strait of Hormuz.
  • Some oil producing nations in the Middle East have halted oil production because they can't ship fuel out of the Gulf and their storage tanks are full, taking about 10 million more barrels per day off the market.

The players

International Energy Agency

A group of 32 nations that began releasing the largest volume of emergency oil reserves in its history: 400 million barrels.

President Donald Trump

Tapping into oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve while lifting sanctions on Russian and Iranian crude and temporarily waiving the Jones Act, a maritime law that requires ships carrying goods between U.S. ports to be U.S.-flagged.

Mark Barteau

Professor of chemical engineering and chemistry at Texas A&M University.

Jim Krane

Energy research fellow at Rice University's Baker Institute.

Daniel Sternoff

Senior fellow at the Columbia Center on Global Energy Policy.

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What they’re saying

“You're talking about these different patches being at the level of maybe 1 to 2 million barrels a day each, and you've got to get to 20, so it's hard to see those actually adding up to the numbers that are needed. And then the question is, how long can you sustain those?”

— Mark Barteau, Professor of chemical engineering and chemistry

“But all of that spare capacity is also bottled up inside the Persian Gulf right now and it can't get to market either. So the main emergency response system that we have is also blocked.”

— Jim Krane, Energy research fellow

“As soon as you are moving to waive sanctions on your adversary with whom you're fighting a military conflict, to do something in their benefit, it just shows you that you are running out of options to try to prevent a rise in the price of oil.”

— Daniel Sternoff, Senior fellow

What’s next

The IEA said in its recent report that 'the resumption of transit through the Strait of Hormuz is the single most important action to return to stable oil and gas flows and reduce the strains on markets and prices.'

The takeaway

The global energy crisis sparked by the Iran war has exposed the vulnerability of the world's oil supply to geopolitical conflicts, and the limitations of short-term fixes like tapping emergency reserves or easing sanctions. Experts warn that without a resolution to the conflict and the restoration of oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, the world may face a prolonged period of high energy prices that could severely impact consumers and businesses.