'Bigger ramifications than Venezuela': Markets brace for impact after U.S. strikes Iran

Market watchers are bracing for turbulence after the U.S. confirmed it has launched "major combat operations" in Iran, a move investors say could carry far greater market consequences than the recent run of geopolitical flare-ups. U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. military has begun " major combat operations " in Iran. Several ministries in the southern part of the Iranian capital, Tehran, were targeted, Reuters quoted an unidentified Iranian official as saying. Markets have been unfazed and accustomed to absorbing recent geopolitical and economic shocks and headlines, including Trump's announcement of a hike in U.S. tariffs on all imports to 15% , as well as the administration's capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro . "This has definitely bigger ramifications than Venezuela," said Florian Weidinger, co-chief investment officer at Santa Lucia Asset Management. "Venezuela was ... only really relevant for people who care about that particular heavy crude," Weidinger told CNBC. The country's heavy, sour crude can be challenging to extract , though it is prized by specific, complex refineries, particularly in the U.S. "That's why it's a bigger risk. You would expect oil to tick up a bit more violently next week as a result of that," he added. Oil to shoot up, pivot to safety Venezuela currently produces an average of 800,000 barrels of crude oil per day , well below its peak of 3.5 million barrels per day, or bpd, in the 1990s. "Venezuela was a production story. is a chokepoint story," said Kenneth Goh, director of private wealth management at UOB Kay Hian in Singapore. Located in the gulf between Oman and Iran, the strait is recognized as one of the world's most important oil choke points . About 13 million barrels per day of crude oil transited the Strait of Hormuz in 2025, accounting for roughly 31% of global seaborne crude flows, according to data from market intelligence firm Kpler. In June 2025, when Israel struck Iranian nuclear sites, equ...