Blockade of Hormuz is strangling global economy, UN chief says

Blockade of Hormuz is strangling global economy, UN chief says

Author: BBC World Service May 1, 2026 Duration: 47:29

The UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is strangling the global economy. He said that even if the restrictions were lifted immediately, supply chains would take months to recover. We ask what options the US has now and what it's likely to cost.

Also in the programme; two coins dating from the reign of English King Ethelred, known as the Unready for his failure to defend his country against the Vikings, come to light in Denmark; and why Saudi Arabia needs to cut its costs, by pulling out of LIV Golf.

(Photo: A ship in the Strait of Hormuz, Oman Credit: REUTERS/Stringer)


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