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Iran Threatens Crucial Strait; China's Rare-Earths Exports Plunge; Tariffs Roil Pharma Supply Chain By Mark R. Long

Iranian lawmakers on Sunday threatened a closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a strip of water connecting the energy rich Persian Gulf to global markets.

The WSJ's David Uberti and Costas Paris write that, after U.S. forces struck three nuclear sites, Iranian state media reported that the nation's parliament approved a closure of the strait . But they added that ultimate power to do so lay with the regime's top security officials. About a fifth of the world's petroleum passes through the 20-mile-wide strait, where dozens of skyscraper-size tankers each day funnel into a pair of 2-mile-wide traffic lanes separated by a 2-mile-wide buffer. The transit through the strait includes a huge share of the world's liquefied natural gas. Many oil traders and energy executives still view the scenario as a scorched-earth tactic and distant possibility. Tanker-tracking firms on Sunday said traffic through the strait was proceeding as usual.

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Quotable Global Trade

China's exports of rare-earth magnets plummeted after it imposed controls on the overseas sale of the crucial high-tech and industrial input, aggravating tensions with the U.S. Total export volumes of the magnets fell 74% in May from a year earlier, the biggest percentage drop on record. Exports of rare earths to the U.S. dropped 93% in May from a year earlier to about 46,000 kilograms.

A U.S. official told Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing that he wanted to revoke waivers used to access American technology in China. (WSJ) The EU plans to exclude Chinese companies from government purchases of medical devices after concluding EU manufacturers don't have equal access in China. (WSJ) Chinese state media signaled stricter regulation over "blind-box" collectibles, hitting shares of Pop Mart International, maker of the wildly popular Labubu dolls. (WSJ) China's "618" shopping festival, the second-largest of the year, generated record online spending of over $100 billion as government measures bolstered consumption, Syntun data show. (WSJ) To Lam, the head of Vietnam's Communist Party, plans to travel to the U.S. in the coming weeks to try to clinch a trade deal before Trump's higher tariffs kick in. (Bloomberg) Number of the Day Healthcare Logistics

Air shipments weighing less than four Tesla Cybertrucks propelled Ireland-a country of only 5.4 million people-to the second-biggest trade imbalance with the U.S. in the first four months of this year. The Journal's Chelsey Dulaney and Jared S. Hopkins write that these frantic shipments of $36 billion worth of hormones for popular obesity and diabetes drugs show how Trump's on-and-off trade war has roiled pharmaceutical supply chains as demand for weight-loss drugs booms. Nearly all of these imports were bound for Indiana, where Zepbound and Mounjaro maker Eli Lilly is based. Ireland is a manufacturing hub for pharmaceutical firms and was at the center of a rush to stockpile goods ahead of tariff deadlines. The White House wants American drug companies to bring production home and in April ordered a probe that could result in tariffs on imported drugs and ingredients. Trump said last week that such tariffs could come "very soon."

A draft U.S.-European Union pact lays out tentative deals on treatment of American tech companies, carbon-based border duties and shipbuilding , but doesn't detail the fate of tariffs Trump has threatened or imposed on the EU. (WSJ) In Memoriam

Fred Smith learned to fly at age 15, studied at Yale and earned a Silver Star, Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts as a Marine in Vietnam. Then, at age 26, he founded Federal Express, the WSJ's Esther Fung writes. Smith, who died Saturday at age 80 , started FedEx with a handful of small planes and over the next 50 years built it into a global delivery giant with more than half a million employees, hundreds of jets crisscrossing the planet and annual revenue of around $90 billion.

In Other News

Japan's inflation gathered pace in May, with core consumer prices excluding fresh food climbing 3.7% from a year earlier, up from April's 3.5% increase and the fastest rise since January of 2023. (WSJ)

British retail sales volumes dropped 2.7% on the month in May, ending a streak of four straight months of rising sales, though consumer confidence has improved this month. (WSJ)

Products made by units of U.S. businesses make up nearly a third of the eurozone's goods trade surplus with the U.S., and most of the bloc's deficit in services, the European Central Bank said. (WSJ)

GXO Logistics hired Patrick Kelleher , most recently DHL Supply Chain's chief executive for North America, as its CEO effective Aug. 19. (Dow Jones Newswires)

Kroger raised its same-store sales outlook and said it plans to close 60 underperforming stores over the next 18 months, while opening about 30 new ones this year. (WSJ)

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said its index for business activity held at minus 4.0 , the same as in May, with a reading below zero pointing to contraction in regional factory activity. (WSJ)

The investment arm of Australia's Macquarie Group raised about $8 billion to invest in infrastructure projects and companies in the Americas. (WSJ)

The U.S. imposed new sanctions on shipping firms, vessels and front companies it says are helping Houthi militants in Yemen generate revenue through illicit trade. (WSJ)

A.P. Moeller-Maersk plans to impose a peak-season surcharge of $4,000 per container shipped from India to the U.S. and Canada, starting July 16. (Journal of Commerce)

Maersk temporarily suspended vessel calls at Israel's Port of Haifa as the conflict with Iran continued. (Seatrade Maritime News)

Imabari Shipbuilding's president was named chairman of the Japan Shipbuilding Industry Association, and called for the nation to double its current market share to at least 20% by 2030. (Splash 247)

Jeep-maker Stellantis is considering the possible sale of its Maserati marque, among other options. (Reuters)

Mitsubishi plans to invest $3.9 billion to expand its solar-power capacity in the U.S. by 160% by 2028, sourcing equipment from local suppliers. (Nikkei Asia)

The National Institutes of Health plans to allocate up to $10 million through 2030 to fund research into the long-term health effects of the 2023 Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. (The Hill)

Cathay Cargo's volumes rose 12.2% year-on-year to 135,806 metric tons in May as the U.S. and China paused their tariff war. (Air Cargo News)

About Us

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at [mark.long@wsj.com]. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long , Liz Young and Paul Berger .

This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 23, 2025 07:03 ET (11:03 GMT)

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