Business
Which Countries Depend the Most on Persian Gulf Oil and Gas
The war in the Middle East has halted most of the oil and gas trade from the region, forcing countries thousands of miles to contend with their energy supplies suddenly vanishing.
The Persian Gulf accounts for roughly a fifth of the world’s energy needs. As Iran effectively blocks shipments, international prices for oil and gas have shot up. That in turn has meant gasoline, jet fuel and other products have become costlier — hurting drivers, business owners and others from Los Angeles to Lahore, Pakistan. As the world becomes gripped by the energy crisis, some nations are feeling the loss more acutely.
Asian countries are the biggest buyers of Persian Gulf energy
Pakistan
Total energy imports in 2024
$17 bil. Japan
Total energy imports in 2024
$139 bil. Thailand
Total energy imports in 2024 $43 bil. South Korea
Total energy imports in 2024
$144 bil. India
Total energy imports in 2024
$180 bil. Maldives
Total energy imports in 2024
$774.1 mil. Taiwan
Total energy imports in 2024
$47 bil. China
Total energy imports in 2024 $413 bil. Sri Lanka
Total energy imports in 2024
$4 bil. Malaysia
Total energy imports in 2024
$44 bil. Singapore
Total energy imports in 2024
$86 bil. Philippines
Total energy imports in 2024
$16 bil. Israel
Total energy imports in 2024 $3 bil. Brunei
Total energy imports in 2024
$5 bil. Myanmar
Total energy imports in 2024
$5 bil. Indonesia
Total energy imports in 2024
$35 bil. Armenia
Total energy imports in 2024
$535.9 mil. Turkey
Total energy imports in 2024 $26 bil. Hong Kong
Total energy imports in 2024
$12 bil. Uzbekistan
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Kazakhstan
Total energy imports in 2024
$628 mil. Yemen
Total energy imports in 2024
$23.5 mil. Azerbaijan
Total energy imports in 2024 $2 bil. Kyrgyzstan
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. Jordan
Total energy imports in 2024
$641 mil. Cambodia
Total energy imports in 2024
$3 bil. Syria
Total energy imports in 2024
$131.2 mil. Bangladesh
Total energy imports in 2024 $7 bil.
In 2024, nearly 21 million barrels of oil a day crossed through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow passageway connecting the Persian Gulf to the world. Four-fifths of that supply went to Asia.
China has long been the biggest purchaser of oil and gas from Persian Gulf nations. And with more than a third of its total supply coming from the region, the disruption is significant for Beijing. But other countries are almost entirely reliant on the region for their energy needs.
Pakistan has considered imposing a four-day workweek, and remote school and work, in order to preserve energy stockpiles. A state-led fund in Thailand, to subsidize the cost of fuel when prices surge, plunged into a deficit this month.
In India, where the economy depends on the Middle East for roughly 40 percent of the country’s oil imports and 80 percent of its gas, a shortage of cooking gas is squeezing households. And across Asia, fliers are being stranded because airlines running low on jet fuel have canceled thousands of flights.
Europe has been more insulated, sort of
Greece
Total energy imports in 2024
$19 bil. Lithuania
Total energy imports in 2024
$7 bil. Poland
Total energy imports in 2024
$28 bil. Serbia
Total energy imports in 2024 $2 bil. Bulgaria
Total energy imports in 2024
$5 bil. Slovenia
Total energy imports in 2024
$4 bil. Italy
Total energy imports in 2024
$50 bil. Albania
Total energy imports in 2024
$931.9 mil. France
Total energy imports in 2024 $73 bil. Ireland
Total energy imports in 2024
$6 bil. Iceland
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. U.K.
Total energy imports in 2024
$62 bil. Netherlands
Total energy imports in 2024
$105 bil. Spain
Total energy imports in 2024 $53 bil. Romania
Total energy imports in 2024
$8 bil. Denmark
Total energy imports in 2024
$6 bil. Ukraine
Total energy imports in 2024
$8 bil. Austria
Total energy imports in 2024
$10 bil. Germany
Total energy imports in 2024 $66 bil. Norway
Total energy imports in 2024
$5 bil. Portugal
Total energy imports in 2024
$10 bil. Moldova
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. Cyprus
Total energy imports in 2024
$3 bil. Belgium
Total energy imports in 2024 $47 bil. Latvia
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Sweden
Total energy imports in 2024
$18 bil. Finland
Total energy imports in 2024
$10 bil. Estonia
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. North Macedonia
Total energy imports in 2024 $902.7 mil. Croatia
Total energy imports in 2024
$6 bil. Switzerland
Total energy imports in 2024
$8 bil. Bosnia and Herzegovina
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. Slovakia
Total energy imports in 2024
$4 bil.
Europe has traditionally been less reliant on the Gulf than Asia has been. It used to get most of its natural gas from Russia, but in recent years it has relied more on the United States and Norway. But the continent has had to endure one energy crisis after another in recent years, including from Russia’s war with Ukraine and the Western sanctions that followed.
Russia is the world’s third-largest producer of oil and second-largest producer of gas, and the sales of its energy products have been significantly restricted while Moscow continues its invasion of Ukraine.
This current crisis comes as European countries, confronting lackluster economic output, try to rebuild their industrial bases and fend off competition from cheaper Chinese exports.
Confronted with soaring prices since its attack with Israel on Iran, the United States temporarily lifted sanctions on Russian oil that is currently at sea, hoping to ease the global supply and markets in the process. The European Union has not made similar moves.
Parts of Africa will be hit hard
Seychelles
Total energy imports in 2024
$308.6 mil. Mauritania
Total energy imports in 2024
$973.5 mil. Uganda
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Mauritius
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. Kenya
Total energy imports in 2024 $5 bil. Egypt
Total energy imports in 2024
$16 bil. Zambia
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Namibia
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. Malawi
Total energy imports in 2024
$476.1 mil. South Africa
Total energy imports in 2024 $18 bil. Tanzania
Total energy imports in 2024
$5 bil. Morocco
Total energy imports in 2024
$8 bil. Mozambique
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Madagascar
Total energy imports in 2024
$841.3 mil. Zimbabwe
Total energy imports in 2024 $2 bil. Senegal
Total energy imports in 2024
$4 bil. Nigeria
Total energy imports in 2024
$13 bil. Benin
Total energy imports in 2024
$398.4 mil. Angola
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Burkina Faso
Total energy imports in 2024 $2 bil. Tunisia
Total energy imports in 2024
$3 bil. Cote d’Ivoire
Total energy imports in 2024
$4 bil. Central African Republic
Total energy imports in 2024
$196.7 mil. Gambia
Total energy imports in 2024
$206.6 mil. Niger
Total energy imports in 2024 $113.6 mil. Lesotho
Total energy imports in 2024
$214.4 mil. Cameroon
Total energy imports in 2024
$424.4 mil. Libya
Total energy imports in 2024
$4 bil.
African nations, like many other countries in the global south, could feel the disruption unevenly. Seychelles, the island nation off the east coast of Africa, imported almost all of its energy from Gulf states in 2024. Mauritius has had a similar reliance, while Nigeria, an oil-rich state and a member of the OPEC Plus oil cartel, has traditionally imported relatively few fossil fuels from the Middle East.
But as the war continues, the impact is being felt beyond the imports of oil and gas. The Persian Gulf is a dominant source of fertilizer, partly because the region’s abundance of energy has spurred the development of factories that make the raw materials for many types of agricultural chemicals.
A sustained rise in the cost of fertilizer could force governments in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa to subsidize the cost of growing crops or otherwise watch food prices climb. That could add to debt burdens afflicting many lower-income countries.
The Americas and elsewhere are feeling broader economic shocks
Argentina
Total energy imports in 2024
$3 bil. Brazil
Total energy imports in 2024
$28 bil. United States
Total energy imports in 2024
$233 bil. Paraguay
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Canada
Total energy imports in 2024 $31 bil. Uruguay
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. Australia
Total energy imports in 2024
$37 bil. Dominican Republic
Total energy imports in 2024
$5 bil. Guatemala
Total energy imports in 2024
$4 bil. Chile
Total energy imports in 2024 $13 bil. Fiji
Total energy imports in 2024
$888.1 mil. Peru
Total energy imports in 2024
$9 bil. Honduras
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Ecuador
Total energy imports in 2024
$5 bil. Colombia
Total energy imports in 2024 $6 bil. El Salvador
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Costa Rica
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. New Zealand
Total energy imports in 2024
$6 bil. Mexico
Total energy imports in 2024
$34 bil. Belize
Total energy imports in 2024 $235.5 mil. Bolivia
Total energy imports in 2024
$2 bil. Nicaragua
Total energy imports in 2024
$1 bil. Barbados
Total energy imports in 2024
$552.3 mil.
The United States is the world’s largest producer of oil and gas. That means the impact of halting the energy trade from the Middle East is much less severe.
But the United States and other countries in the region that do not import great quantities from the Gulf are still feeling economic strain. The jump in oil prices – to over $100 a barrel in recent weeks – has already weighed on other major economic factors.
The cost of gasoline has jumped by about a dollar a gallon nationally since the war began. American airlines have begun to cut flights because of fuel costs. Concerns about inflation have pushed mortgage rates to their highest level in three months, just weeks after they fell below 6 percent for the first time since 2022.
If the war drags on, or if oil and gas prices continue to rise, the damage will most likely grow, economists say. It is perhaps one reason why the White House has forcefully insisted that it does not need Middle Eastern oil — and is increasingly trying to use military force to stop Iran’s blockade of it.
Methodology
To calculate total energy imports for each country, The New York Times used 2024 international trade data from the Observatory for Economic Complexity and tallied the value of imports for a subset of energy-related goods. A share of imports from Gulf countries was then calculated from that subset.
The Gulf countries included are: Kuwait, Iraq, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Iran.
The categories used were: crude petroleum oils (HS 270900), bituminous petroleum distillates (HS 271000), liquefied natural gas (HS 271111), liquefied propane (HS 271112), liquefied butanes (HS 271113) and liquefied petroleum gases (HS 271119).
Business
Airbnb to add grocery delivery and car rentals ahead of World Cup
Airbnb unveiled a new set of services for guests on Wednesday, adding car rentals, airport pickup and grocery delivery to its online marketplace that connects travelers with local hosts.
Customers can now get groceries delivered to their Airbnb through a partnership with Instacart and have a driver meet them at the airport with Airbnb’s Welcome Pickups. The app is also offering luggage storage in partnership with Bounce and will add in-app car rentals later this summer.
At the same time, Airbnb is ramping up its use of AI by adding AI-powered review summaries and lodging comparisons, the company said.
The company has been expanding beyond lodging since last year, when it introduced Airbnb Experiences and Services, giving guests the option to book private tours and chef-cooked meals through the app.
In an earnings call earlier this month, the company’s chief executive, Brian Chesky, said the company is at “the very, very beginning of how AI is going to change how we all do our jobs.”
The changes are coming in time for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will take place in 16 cities across the U.S., Mexico and Canada. The company said its offering exclusive World Cup experiences, such as watch parties and access to stadiums.
“In terms of what we’ve seen in cumulative bookings heading into the event, the World Cup is slated to be the largest event in Airbnb’s history,” said the company’s chief financial officer, Ellie Mertz, on the earnings call.
Airbnb gained popularity for offering travelers unique and homey stays on other people’s property, but it added boutique hotel bookings to its platform late last year. The move had some customers questioning if the app was straying too far from its original purpose.
In its announcement this week, the company said it is partnering with more independent hotels in 20 top destinations, including New York, London and Singapore. On the earnings call, Chesky said hotels on Airbnb could become a multibillion-dollar revenue business.
The San Francisco-based company was founded in 2007 and gave homeowners the opportunity to earn money by renting out their space to travelers seeking something different from a hotel. Airbnb bookings can range from private bedrooms in a shared home to luxury mansions and yachts.
The company’s revenue grew 18% year over year to $2.7 billion in the first quarter, while net income increased slightly to $160 million. Airbnb’s new services and offerings could transform it from a home-sharing platform to a holistic travel marketplace, analysts said.
Shares of the company have increased by 14% over the past six months and fell by less than 1% on Thursday.
Business
SpaceX files to go public in huge IPO deal
Elon Musk wants to take investors on a ride to the moon — and beyond.
His pioneering rocket company SpaceX filed Wednesday for what’s expected to be the largest initial public offering in history, potentially raising at least $75 billion and valuing the company at as much as $2 trillion.
The registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an expected public offering next month explicitly sets aside stocks for retail investors, though the exact number will be spelled out in a later filing, as will the offering price and company valuation.
Interest in the stock offering is expected to be high despite the billionaire’s controversial politics, including his involvement last year with the Department of Government Efficiency, the makeshift cost-cutting effort that resulted in the loss of hundreds of thousands of government jobs.
“Potential investors are probably just as polarized as the electorate is too, given his dabbling in politics,” said Carol Schleif, chief market strategist for BMO Private Wealth. “But it’s not just the SpaceX IPO per se, it’s a bigger, broader excitement among investors for space investment in general.”
Investor interest was piqued by the Artemis II moon mission this year that SpaceX did not participate in, she said. However, the company is expected to play a larger role in future missions that take astronauts to the moon..
Ultimately, Musk, 54, wants to establish a colony on Mars but those plans have been set on the back burner, with NASA now focusing on moon missions.
Musk will remain the company’s chief executive and chairman. Under a dual-class stock structure as a holder of special Class B shares he will be able to control the election of directors, the filing says.
The IPO is expected to be at least twice as large as the current record holder: Saudi Aramco, the state-controlled national oil and gas company of Saudi Arabia, which raised nearly $30 billion in 2019.
Nearly two dozen banks will be underwriting the IPO and offering shares to investors, including Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and Citigroup.
Founded in 2002 in El Segundo, SpaceX has revolutionized the aerospace industry by developing the reusable Falcon 9 rocket that has radically lowered launch costs.
The company moved its headquarters from Hawthorne to Texas in 2024. However, SpaceX retains large operations in the South Bay city and blasts off regularly from Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County.
Scores of former SpaceX employees have launched startups in Southern California, including rocket company Relativity Space, hypersonic missile startup Castelion and satellite manufacturer Apex Space.
Since developing its reusable rocket technology, SpaceX has established its Starlink network as the leading satellite-based broadband internet service. It also is moving into satellite-based cellular service and this year merged with Musk’s xAi artificial intelligence company that also included his X social network.
Marco Cáceres, an aerospace analyst at Teal Group, said that the advantage of going public for SpaceX lies in the IPO’s ability to raise a large amount of capital quickly to complete development of its Starship rocket.
“It is going to dominate the market even more than the Falcon 9 is dominating the market now,” he said. “That’s going to be ultimately what’s going to drive their business for the next 10 years.”
The 12th test launch of Starship is set for Friday from the company’s south Texas launch facility. The rocket is the third version of craft, standing more than 400 feet tall and with about three times the payload of the second version.
The regulatory filing claims that the market for its rocket, internet and mobile telephone businesses could be as large as $28.5 trillion.
SpaceX also plans to launch thousands of orbiting data centers powered by the sun that would perform AI calculations.
With the company making massive capital investments, it recorded a $4.28-billion loss in the first quarter. Last year, it recorded $18.7 billion in revenue and lost $4.94 billion, according to the filing.
The public offering is expected to hit the market next month after a “road show,” during which SpaceX will seek to drum up interest from institutional and retail investors.
It will arrive after a fairly quiet year for IPOs that was brightened last week when Cerebras Systems, a Sunnyvale company that makes semiconductors for AI supercomputers, went public.
Shares at Cerebras were offered at $185 and jumped 68% on its opening day. They closed Wednesday at $290.69.
Matt Kennedy, a senior strategist at Renaissance Capital, said the SpaceX offering would dwarf that of Cerebras, as it is expected to raise more than every IPO combined in the last two years.
“A win here or a loss could really impact the IPO market,” he said. “The sheer size of this deal is going to make or lose fortunes.”
Among the oddest disclosures of the IPO is a decision by the company’s board in January to grant Musk 1 billion Class B shares if the company reaches a certain market capitalization and establishes a “permanent human colony on Mars with at least one million inhabitants.”
Business
Erewhon opens new Southern California location
Erewhon opened its newest location in Glendale on Wednesday, marking the luxury grocer’s 14th store in Southern California with more set to open soon.
The new store, located at 520 N. Glendale Ave., includes the chain’s signature cafe and tonic bar as well as an indoor-outdoor patio space.
Known for its upscale, trendy products and high prices, Erewhon has grown into a tourist destination in Los Angeles and a hot spot for celebrities and influencers.
The Glendale location will bring Erewhon staples to trendy consumers in the area, including the beloved Strawberry Glaze Skin Smoothie, which until last year was named after the model Hailey Bieber.
Employees at the store handed out complimentary gift bags and fresh flowers during the grand opening Wednesday morning.
“This location was designed to reflect the spirit of the neighborhood while creating a welcoming space to gather, centered around wellness, connection, and a commitment to the quality standards that define Erewhon,” Erewhon President Josephine Antoci said in a statement.
The company purchased the space, which was formerly a hardware store, in 2024.
Erewhon has locations in several of Southern California’s wealthiest areas, including Calabasas and Beverly Hills. It also has stores in Venice, Manhattan Beach and at the Grove.
“Erewhon’s decision to invest in Glendale reflects confidence in our city’s economic future,” Glendale Mayor Ardashes Kassakhian said in a news release.
The grocer was founded in 1966 by Japanese immigrants Michio and Aveline Kushi — pioneers of the natural-foods macrobiotic movement — who began selling imported organic goods out of their Boston home. In 1969, the company opened its first Los Angeles location on Beverly Boulevard.
Josephine and Tony Antoci bought the company in 2011 and helped launch it to its luxury status with a cult-like following. Tony serves as chief executive while Josephine handpicks much of the store’s merchandise.
By the mid-2010s, Erewhon had become a watering hole for celebrities such as the Kardashians and the Beckhams.
The company has its eye on further expansion. A Thousand Oaks location is slated to open this August and stores in Costa Mesa and downtown Los Angeles are planned for 2027. An Erewhon cafe opened in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s new David Geffen Galleries earlier this month.
The Pacific Palisades location, which shut down after the wildfires last year, is set to reopen in January.
The Glendale Erewhon takes the place of Virgil’s Hardware Home Center, which opened in 1932 and closed in 2019.
-
World8 minutes agoDombrovskis rules out easing Russia sanctions despite inflation fears
-
News38 minutes agoCharges dropped against activists in Chicago immigration crackdown amid grand jury misconduct claims | CNN
-
New York2 hours agoHe Sued the N.Y.P.D. He Advised ‘Homeland.’ Now He’s Mamdani’s Lawyer.
-
Los Angeles, Ca2 hours agoLoved ones search for missing 21-year-old Southern California man with special needs
-
Detroit, MI3 hours agoSouthfield Freeway closed after shooting in Detroit, state police says
-
San Francisco, CA3 hours agoSan Francisco soccer league Girls Got Goals ready for World Cup in Bay Area
-
Dallas, TX3 hours agoDallas felon arrested after allegedly shooting 14-year-old inside vacant Pleasant Grove home
-
Miami, FL3 hours agoSister of high-ranking Cuba conglomerate official arrested by ICE in Miami