On March 6, the Middle East situation continued to escalate, becoming the core disturbing factor in the global financial market. Oil prices soared, U.S. stocks plummeted, and domestic industries such as aviation, hotels, and shipping were also affected to varying degrees, with market risk aversion continuing to ferment.

In the international market, affected by the escalation of conflicts between Iran, the United States and Israel, U.S. crude oil recorded the largest single-day increase in nearly four years, and the Dow Jones Index plummeted nearly 800 points. The market is worried that the shipping in the Strait of Hormuz will be blocked, which will further push up energy prices and exacerbate global inflation concerns. However, on March 5 local time, Iran clearly stated that it has not blocked the Strait of Hormuz and is handling passing ships in accordance with international rules, which alleviated market panic to a certain extent. Near the close of A-shares, the European line of the container shipping index plummeted.

In the domestic market, oil and gas theme funds broke out first. In the past two days, many oil and gas ETFs have hit the daily limit, and relevant indices such as the CSI Oil and Gas Industry Index have risen sharply. However, institutions have also urgently issued risk warnings, reminding investors to be vigilant against correction risks brought by fluctuations in geopolitical situations. In the aviation industry, on the basis of safety assessments, Chinese airlines have resumed some flights to the Middle East. Hainan Airlines’ round-trip flight from Haikou to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, has been successfully completed, gradually alleviating the impact of the previous flight suspension.

The hotel industry has been affected to a certain extent. A hotel in Shanghai had 55,000 yuan worth of orders canceled in a single day, and the number of Middle Eastern customers in hotels in Guangzhou, Foshan and other places has decreased significantly. Practitioners have urgently adjusted customer source and price strategies to cope with short-term pressure, but they generally look forward to the medium-term rebound opportunities brought by post-war reconstruction. In addition, the insurance market has also been affected. Many marine insurers have canceled war risk insurance for ships in the Gulf region, and premiums have been raised by 25%-50% sharply.