America may be a petrostate. But the energy shock still hurts

GateUser-9ad11037 · 2026-03-20T11:41:59+00:00

The 1970s' economic trauma, marked by oil price spikes and stagflation, parallels current events with Trump's conflict in Iran, causing surging oil prices and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

GateUser-9ad11037

2026-03-20 11:41:59

Abstract generation in progress

For Americans of a certain age, and macroeconomists of all ages, the 1970s carry a lingering trauma. Then as now, petrol prices spiked after tumult in the Middle East. Inflation soared; growth slumped. Cars queued at parched petrol stations and the ugly word “stagflation” entered the vernacular. The parallels to Donald Trump’s war in Iran hardly need drawing. Nearly three weeks after American and Israeli bombs started falling on Tehran, oil prices are up by half and the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s crude normally passes, is all but shut.

This page may contain third-party content, which is provided for information purposes only (not representations/warranties) and should not be considered as an endorsement of its views by Gate, nor as financial or professional advice. See Disclaimer for details.

1 Likes