How to get through the Strait of Hormuz
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What is the significance of the Strait of Hormuz in global shipping?
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Right now, as we record this show, Tuesday, April 14th, around 2 p.m. Eastern, Iran and the U.S. are still blocking marine traffic from leaving the Persian Gulf. We have no idea how this is going to play out. But we do know that it will have huge implications for the global economy. And for this guy. Testing one, two. Okay. It's recording. Who are you and what do you do?
Christian St. Clair. I'm the production manager at Fantagraphics Books.
How has Iran's control over the Strait affected maritime traffic?
Yes, books. But hold on. This is not a show about the Planet Money book. It's about two books that Christian from Fantagraphics has been working on that are weirdly connected to the war between the U.S. and Iran. I first called Christian a little over a week ago, just before the ceasefire was announced, and he told me about the books in question.
One is Roberta Gregory's Bitchy. It's a collection of kind of feminist comics. And then another one is Adventures into Weird Worlds.
The books were printed in India, and Christian got word in February that they were on schedule to be put on an enormous and very, very hot pink container ship called the One Majesty. and would get to the U.S. in early April, right on time for a book launch party. And then the war started, and Iran effectively cut off these skinny waterway ships used to get in and out of the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz.
Not too long after, Christian was at a production meeting, and a colleague asked, Do any of our books go through the Strait of Hormuz? And I was like, no, I don't think so. I was like, you know, they usually just go straight through the Suez.
And yet, a couple weeks later, Christian was wondering about the status of those books, and he Googled the name of the bright pink ship, the One Majesty.
I just thought it would, like, show up on Vessel Finder like it always did. But? But I just plugged it in again. Only this time, it's like, you know... It's like, Ooga, one majesty has been attacked in the Strait of Hormuz. And I was just like, oh my God, you've got to be kidding me.
Christian learned that the crew was safe, the cargo too. Apparently the attack left the ship with just a small hole in it. But it was not going anywhere anytime soon. It was stranded in the Persian Gulf. And Christian, sitting at his desk in Seattle, he knew these books were not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. There was a war going on. People were dying. Iran's blockade of the strait had cut off 20% of the world's oil supply and other important commodities like helium and fertilizer. No, for Christian, like many of us, the experience of the war has been kind of removed. We've mostly seen it at, you know, the gas pump. Christian has seen it with these books, which he kept checking on every day by looking up the status of that bright pink ship.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the significance of the Strait of Hormuz in global shipping?
0:00–1:55
2
How has Iran's control over the Strait affected maritime traffic?
1:55–4:48
3
What challenges do ships face when navigating the Strait of Hormuz?
4:48–7:22
4
How do ships obtain permission to pass through the Strait?
7:22–9:34
5
What are the financial implications of passing through the Strait?
9:34–11:31
6
How does the situation in the Strait impact global oil supply?
11:31–14:03
7
What lessons can be drawn from Christian's experience with shipping?
14:03–16:46
8
What are the potential future scenarios for the Strait of Hormuz?
16:46–19:08