Zachary Karabell is an author and investor and writes “The Edgy Optimist” on Substack.
Weeks into the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, the world is facing the greatest energy supply shock in history. Greater, even, than the 1970s crisis, with roughly 20 percent of the world’s oil now trapped. And the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical choke point, does more than disrupt oil shipments; it cuts off supplies of natural gas and fertilizer for agriculture. Around 20 percent of global fertilizer supply is made by Persian Gulf states and cannot be shipped through the strait.