{"id":72213,"date":"2026-09-25T00:38:20","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T04:38:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-update-strait-of-hormuz-traffic-plummets-as-trade-tensions-and-ai-policies-stir-volatility\/72213\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T00:38:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T04:38:20","slug":"global-markets-update-strait-of-hormuz-traffic-plummets-as-trade-tensions-and-ai-policies-stir-volatility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-update-strait-of-hormuz-traffic-plummets-as-trade-tensions-and-ai-policies-stir-volatility\/72213\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Markets Update: Strait of Hormuz Traffic Plummets as Trade Tensions and AI Policies Stir Volatility"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Strait of Hormuz commodity vessel crossings have fallen to single digits<\/strong>, reaching a severe low of <strong>9 transits per day<\/strong> as regional tensions and military escalations deter commercial shipping.<\/li>\n<li><strong>President Donald Trump\u2019s aggressive AI agenda<\/strong> is facing unexpected resistance from his <strong>MAGA base<\/strong>, with high-profile activists protesting the rapid expansion of data centers and the influence of &quot;Silicon Valley elites.&quot;<\/li>\n<li><strong>The European Union is pressuring the UK<\/strong> to align its trade policy by raising tariffs on <strong>Chinese electric vehicles<\/strong>, warning that a &quot;soft&quot; UK market could undermine the EU\u2019s own protective barriers.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Russia\u2019s flagged shipping fleet has expanded by 36%<\/strong> to 382 vessels as Moscow moves to shield its energy exports from Western crackdowns on &quot;stateless&quot; shadow tankers.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Asian bond yields are climbing<\/strong> despite a slight easing in <a href=\"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/energy\/crude-oil\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"12\" title=\"Crude oil\">oil prices<\/a>, with <strong>Japan\u2019s 2-year JGB yield hitting 1.930%<\/strong>, its highest level in decades, as markets price in further policy normalization.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Geopolitical Strains Disrupt Energy and Maritime Trade<\/h2>\n<p>The <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>, a critical chokepoint for 20% of the world&#39;s oil and LNG, is seeing a dramatic slowdown in commercial activity. Preliminary data indicates that commodity vessel transits dropped to just <strong>9 ships on Thursday<\/strong>, down from a 10-day average of <strong>18<\/strong>. This near-standstill is typically associated with acute military escalations, forcing insurers to reassess war-risk premiums and causing tanker freight rates to surge.<\/p>\n<p>Simultaneously, <strong>Russia<\/strong> is intensifying its efforts to bypass Western sanctions by expanding its domestic shipping registry. The number of Russian-flagged vessels has grown by <strong>36% since early 2025<\/strong>, reaching <strong>382 ships<\/strong>. Analysts note that over <strong>80% of these new entries<\/strong> are already under international sanctions, suggesting the Russian flag is becoming a primary refuge for tankers previously operating as &quot;stateless&quot; or under false flags to move oil and gas.<\/p>\n<h2>Trade Tensions: EU-UK Alignment and Thai Export Surges<\/h2>\n<p>In Europe, trade relations between Brussels and London are under renewed strain. The <strong>European Union<\/strong> has formally called on the <strong>United Kingdom<\/strong> to increase tariffs on <strong>Chinese-made cars<\/strong>. EU officials are concerned that if the UK remains a &quot;soft market&quot; with lower duties, it will serve as a backdoor for Chinese manufacturers to bypass the EU&#39;s recently imposed anti-subsidy tariffs, effectively deindustrializing the European automotive sector.<\/p>\n<p>In Southeast Asia, <strong>Thailand\u2019s Commerce Ministry<\/strong> has projected that national exports could grow by <strong>15% this year<\/strong>, a significant upward revision from previous estimates. This boom is largely driven by a <strong>68.2% surge in computer and electronics exports<\/strong>, fueled by global demand for AI infrastructure. However, economists warn that Thailand is increasingly acting as a <strong>transit hub<\/strong> for Chinese and Taiwanese goods, which may lead to widening trade deficits despite record-breaking top-line export numbers.<\/p>\n<h2>Technology and AI: Political Friction and Market Moves<\/h2>\n<p><strong>President Donald Trump<\/strong> has rebranded AI as &quot;Superintelligence&quot; (SI), vowing to win the global race against China by removing regulatory hurdles. However, this pro-tech stance is drawing fire from segments of his <strong>MAGA base<\/strong>. Activists like <strong>Amy Kremer<\/strong> have begun organizing protests against AI data centers in Republican strongholds, citing concerns over energy consumption, land use, and the perceived &quot;globalist&quot; nature of the industry.<\/p>\n<p>In the corporate sector, <strong>GoDaddy (<a href=\"\/stock\/GDDY\">GDDY<\/a>)<\/strong> is seeing renewed analyst interest. <strong>Jefferies<\/strong> recently adjusted its price target for the company to <strong>$100<\/strong>, up from a previous low of <strong>$85<\/strong>, following reports that <strong>Gen Digital<\/strong> may be exploring a takeover bid. The stock has been volatile as investors weigh the company&#39;s transition toward &quot;agentic web building&quot; against the disruptive potential of generative AI.<\/p>\n<h2>Fixed Income and Credit Ratings<\/h2>\n<p>Asian bond markets remain under pressure as global yields reach multi-year highs. <strong>Japan\u2019s 2-year Government Bond (JGB) yield<\/strong> climbed <strong>3.0 basis points to 1.930%<\/strong>, reflecting expectations that the <strong>Bank of Japan<\/strong> will continue to normalize interest rates. This trend is mirrored across the region, with <strong>Australia\u2019s 10-year yield<\/strong> also gaining ground as investors price in a higher-for-longer interest rate environment.<\/p>\n<p>In credit markets, <strong>Fitch Ratings<\/strong> has assigned an <strong>&#39;A&#39; rating<\/strong> to <strong>Mizuho Markets Cayman\u2019s $25 million<\/strong> guaranteed senior notes. The notes, which mature in <strong>2029<\/strong>, are backed by a guarantee from <strong>Mizuho Bank, Ltd.<\/strong>, reflecting the parent company&#39;s strong credit profile and the strategic importance of its offshore funding vehicles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Strait of Hormuz commodity vessel crossings have fallen to single digits, reaching a severe low of 9 transits [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"rank_math_schema_Article":[],"rank_math_focus_keyword":[],"rank_math_description":[],"financial_data_references":[],"stock_symbols_mentioned":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[5012],"tags":[21013,33,311,633,3703,4491,4811,4824,5112,20479],"class_list":["post-72213","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","tag-gddy","tag-msft","tag-mu","tag-nvda","tag-ai","tag-energy-markets","tag-global-trade","tag-geopolitics","tag-jgb","tag-si"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72213","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72213"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72213\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72213"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72213"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72213"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}