Strait of Hormuz crisis poses fresh threat to global food, energy
FT News Briefing
Forhecz Topher
4.4 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 23 March 2026
⏱️ 12 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The World Food Project warns millions more could be pushed into acute hunger if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. Plus, energy executives meet in Houston as war in Iran rages, and China pitches itself as a “harbour of stability” to global CEOs. And Trump escalates his rhetoric on Cuba, raising fears of U.S.-Cuba confrontation.
Mentioned in this podcast:
Piles of wheat and canned food stuck in transit as Iran war disrupts aid
Iran war is the greatest threat to global energy ‘in history’, warns IEA
Canada’s oil producers in line for C$90bn windfall from Iran war
China touts itself as ‘harbour of stability’ amid Iran war
Cuba hit by second nationwide power outage in a week
Credit: NBC
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Today’s FT News Briefing was hosted by Victoria Craig, and produced by Julia Webster and Sonja Hutson. Our show was mixed by Alex Higgins. Additional help from Peter Barber. Our executive producer is Topher Forhecz. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s Global Head of Audio. The show’s theme music is by Metaphor Music.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Good morning from the Financial Times. Today is Monday, March 23rd, and this is your FT News briefing. |
| 0:10.6 | The Strait of Hormuz is still closed, which is raising fresh alarm over global food and energy supplies. |
| 0:17.5 | That will be a focus for the world's energy executives gathered in Texas this week. |
| 0:22.5 | Plus, Cuba suffers its second nationwide blackout in less than a week. |
| 0:27.9 | So what we're seeing is Cuba, which operates as a one-party state led by the Communist Party |
| 0:33.4 | since the 60s, this is one of the most kind of existential crises it's faced. |
| 0:39.6 | I'm Victoria Craig, and here's the news you need to start your day. |
| 1:04.0 | We're about halfway through a 48-hour deadline set late Saturday by U.S. President Donald Trump for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. |
| 1:08.7 | He's threatened to strike the nation's power plants if shipping does not resume in that time. |
| 1:12.2 | As the clock ticks down, the United Nations World Food Program says 70,000 tons of food aid are stranded at sea. That's because the waterway is a crucial gateway |
| 1:19.4 | linking major shipping lanes worldwide, and with vessels blocked, key hubs are effectively cut off. |
| 1:26.0 | About 21,000 tons of wheat for southern Yemen remain stuck in |
| 1:29.7 | Oman, while shipments to the Democratic Republic of Congo are delayed in Tanzania due to congestion. |
| 1:36.1 | The WFP warns another 45 million people could be pushed into acute hunger if the disruption |
| 1:41.9 | continues, raising fears of a deepening global food crisis. |
| 1:51.5 | Iran has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz indefinitely to all traffic and launch |
| 1:56.6 | attacks against regional energy targets if Donald Trump follows through on his threat to strike |
| 2:02.1 | its power plants. That will certainly be a topic of conversation for Titans of the Energy |
| 2:07.2 | World who are gathering in Houston, Texas this week. They're assembling at what's been dubbed |
| 2:12.0 | the most important energy conference in the world. Our own Jamie Smith, the FT's US Energy Editor, will also be in Houston, |
| 2:20.2 | but first he joins me to talk about what we can expect from the gathering. Hi, Jamie. |
| 2:24.4 | Hi, Victoria. So you're going to be with the biggest names in energy all week. What are you expecting |
... |
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