Hormuz Closure Prompts Global Scrutiny of Malacca Strait Vulnerabilities

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has triggered widespread alarm over global sea lane security, with Asian policymakers now scrutinizing the Strait of Malacca, the world's busiest maritime chokepoint for oil and trade. European stocks declined sharply on Thursday amid escalating navigation concerns in Hormuz, reflecting investor fears of broader disruptions to energy supplies and supply chains. According to reports from Asharq Al-Awsat, this incident has forced a reevaluation of vulnerabilities in other critical waterways, placing the Malacca Strait under intense focus.

The Strait of Malacca, stretching about 900 kilometers through Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, handles far more traffic than Hormuz, transporting 23.2 million barrels of oil per day in the first half of 2025—29 percent of global maritime oil flows, compared to Hormuz's 20.9 million. More than 102,500 vessels, mostly tankers, are projected to pass through by the end of 2025, up from 94,300 the previous year, as noted by Malaysia's Marine Department and tanker-tracking service Vortexa. This congestion makes it indispensable for East Asian economies like China, Japan, and South Korea, with 75 percent of China's Middle East, African, and Asian crude imports routing through its narrow passages.

Its physical constraints amplify risks: at the Phillips Channel in the Singapore Strait, the waterway narrows to just 1.7 miles wide and remains relatively shallow at 25 to 27 meters in parts, heightening chances of collisions, groundings, oil spills, or piracy. Analysts from Tekedia and the US Energy Information Administration describe it as structurally more vulnerable than Hormuz due to dense traffic and limited maneuvering room, where even a brief incident—accidental, deliberate, or cyber-related—could cause outsized economic damage. With Hormuz already blocked, any Malacca friction would squeeze energy markets further, forcing Asian refiners to tap reserves, delay petrochemical production, and spike freight and insurance costs.

Alternative routes like the Lombok or Sunda straits exist but add days to voyages, delaying shipments and inflating expenses for vessels too large for Malacca's depths. Regional authorities, including Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, have reaffirmed commitments to secure the strait, with Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority emphasizing reliable infrastructure and international cooperation. Yet concerns persist over illegal ship-to-ship oil transfers, often used to mask origins, and potential spillover from tensions in the South China Sea or Taiwan Strait, through which another 21 percent of global trade flows, as highlighted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The International Energy Agency has warned of prolonged Middle East energy disruptions, potentially taking two years to recover pre-crisis output, with no new tanker loadings in March already cutting fresh supplies to Asia. This has sharpened fears of price volatility and supply shortages for industries reliant on just-in-time deliveries. As governments monitor these chokepoints, the Hormuz closure underscores the fragility of global trade architecture, urging enhanced security measures to prevent a cascade of crises affecting billions in economic activity.