How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade
Published . Updated .
South Korea’s Sinokor controls about half the tanker transits through the Strait of Hormuz, benefiting from a big bet just before the war in Iran started.
Directly affected
- No company is named in this report.
Indirectly affected
- USO United States Oil Fund+13.9% 30d
United States Oil Fund: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story.
- XLE Energy Select Sector SPDR+12.1% 30d
Energy Select Sector SPDR: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story.
- BWET Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF-3.3% 17d
Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF: it tracks tanker freight rates. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story.
- ITA iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF-3.0% 30d
iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF: it holds defense and aerospace contractors. Linked by “war” (defense) in this story.
- EWY iShares MSCI South Korea ETF-19.2% 30d
iShares MSCI South Korea ETF holds stocks listed in South Korea, which this story is about (“south korea”).
- FRO Frontline+14.2% 30d
Frontline (deep sea foreign transportation of freight): tanker owners earn more when more crude has to move by sea. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story.
- DHT DHT Holdings
DHT Holdings (deep sea foreign transportation of freight): tanker owners earn more when more crude has to move by sea. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story.
- INSW International Seaways+1.7% 11d
International Seaways (water transportation): tanker owners earn more when more crude has to move by sea. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story.
Price reaction, T-5 to T+3
| Ticker | T-5 | T-3 | T-1 | T0 | T+1 | T+2 | T+3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USO | -1.54% | -1.29% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| XLE | -0.51% | -2.20% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| BWETNo price data for this ticker | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ITANo price data for this ticker | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| EWYNo price data for this ticker | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| FRO | -2.94% | -2.39% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| DHT | -1.70% | -2.24% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
| INSW | +1.66% | -0.13% | base | after close | after close | after close | after close |
Closing-price change versus T-1, the last close before the story. T0 to T+3 fill in after each market close. Prices: Alpaca IEX.
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South Korea’s Sinokor controls about half the tanker transits through the Strait of Hormuz, benefiting from a big bet just before the war in Iran started.
Source: The New York Times
How United States Oil Fund (USO) moved after the last 10 energy shocks
United States Oil Fund (USO) the next day, across 10 earlier stories: average -0.19%, largest gain +2.20%, largest drop -3.69%, from 9 prices.
| Company | When | Average | Largest gain | Largest drop | Prices |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States Oil Fund (USO) | the next day | -0.19% | +2.20% | -3.69% | 9 |
| United States Oil Fund (USO) | three days later | -0.20% | +1.56% | -1.37% | 5 |
| Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE) | the next day | -0.56% | +0.71% | -1.69% | 9 |
| Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE) | three days later | -0.31% | +0.52% | -0.87% | 5 |
| IShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) | the next day | +4.01% | +4.01% | +4.01% | 1 |
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- Why Oil Prices Are High Despite Persian Gulf Supply Recovery
United States Oil Fund (USO) compared with energy stocks (XLE) since 1 Nov 2026
| Company | When | Move | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| DHT Holdings (DHT) | three days earlier | -2.24% | final price |
| DHT Holdings (DHT) | five days earlier | -1.70% | final price |
| Frontline (FRO) | three days earlier | -2.39% | final price |
| Frontline (FRO) | five days earlier | -2.94% | final price |
| International Seaways (INSW) | three days earlier | -0.13% | final price |
| International Seaways (INSW) | five days earlier | +1.66% | final price |
| United States Oil Fund (USO) | three days earlier | -1.29% | final price |
| United States Oil Fund (USO) | five days earlier | -1.54% | final price |
| Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE) | three days earlier | -2.20% | final price |
| Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE) | five days earlier | -0.51% | final price |
How busy Persian Gulf has been lately
Geopolitics Alpha has 14 stories about Persian Gulf from the past 7 days and 45 stories from the past 30. That is about its usual pace over the past month. “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade” is tagged to Persian Gulf.
Who gains and who loses around United States Oil Fund (USO)
The side that tends to collect
- FRO Frontline
For “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade,” Frontline (FRO) tends to benefit, medium confidence. Reason on file: Frontline (deep sea foreign transportation of freight): tanker owners earn more when more crude has to move by sea. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story
- DHT DHT Holdings
For “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade,” DHT Holdings (DHT) tends to benefit, medium confidence. Reason on file: DHT Holdings (deep sea foreign transportation of freight): tanker owners earn more when more crude has to move by sea. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story
- INSW International Seaways
International Seaways (INSW) tends to benefit, medium confidence in the 1 Nov 2026 story “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade.” Reason on file: International Seaways (water transportation): tanker owners earn more when more crude has to move by sea. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story
No up or down call on file
- USO United States Oil Fund
In “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade,” United States Oil Fund (USO) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence. Reason on file: United States Oil Fund: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story
- XLE Select Sector Spdr Tr
Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence in the 1 Nov 2026 story “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade.” Reason on file: Energy Select Sector SPDR: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story
- BWET Amplify Commodity Trust
For “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade,” Amplify Commodity Trust (BWET) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence. Reason on file: Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF: it tracks tanker freight rates. Linked by “tanker” (tanker shipping) in this story
- ITA IShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF
For “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade,” IShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) is linked, with no stored direction, medium confidence. Reason on file: iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF: it holds defense and aerospace contractors. Linked by “war” (defense) in this story
From Persian Gulf to United States Oil Fund (USO)
The 1 Nov 2026 story “How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade” names United States Oil Fund (USO) because of Persian Gulf.
United States Oil Fund (USO) is on the page because United States Oil Fund: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story
Also listed, Select Sector Spdr Tr (XLE): Energy Select Sector SPDR: its price follows crude oil. Linked by “oil” (oil) in this story
Price levels for United States Oil Fund (USO)
BWET traded between 788.51 and 1047.07 across 17 sessions. The latest close on file is 907.20. USO traded between 141.82 and 171.80 across 20 sessions. The latest close on file is 168.83. XLE traded between 62.06 and 70.15 across 20 sessions. The latest close on file is 70.00.
A simple score for United States Oil Fund (USO)
46 out of 100
“How a Little-Known Company Dominated the Persian Gulf Oil Trade” scores 46 out of 100. The score uses 1 sources, and 8 linked companies.