The market is bracing for a worsening of the energy crisis as the US opts to blockade the Strait of Hormuz following failed peace negotiations. Pic: Getty Images

ASX slides 0.39% with 8 of 11 sectors lower
Oil rebounds to +US$100 a barrel as US blockades Strait of Hormuz
Energy, utilities, telecoms sectors outperform

The fragile two-week ceasefire surrounding the Iranian conflict is in dire jeopardy after peace talks between the US and Iran failed within just 21 hours.

The US is preparing to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, unwilling to allow Iranian oil to continue to flow from the Strait despite the ongoing energy crisis.

US Central Command says the blockade will be "enforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas, including all Iranian ports on the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman."

US President Trump also implied any ships paying Iran's safe passage toll would also be subject to some kind of retaliation.

"No one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage on the high seas," he wrote in a Truth Social post.

Oil prices have rebounded to more than US$100 a barrel in response.

If successful, the blockade will stymie a further 2 million barrels of oil a day, cutting even more supply from global supply chains.

The S&P ASX 200 took the news on the chin, sliding 0.39% by day's end but bouncing off session lows of -0.79%.

Energy and utilities benefited directly once again, while defensive sectors like telecoms, consumer staples and financials outperformed relative to the rest of the market.

Breadth was weak with just 43 stocks rising vs 151 in the red, but overall the ASX is holding fairly steady, just 3% from its current 52-week high.

ASX stocks on the move

Nickel Industries (ASX:NIC) slipped 3.11% after China announced it would ban sulphuric acid exports starting next month.

China is the largest producer - and consumer - of sulphuric acid, accounting for somewhere around 28.7% of the global market.

Heap-leaching and high-pressure acid leaching both rely on sulphuric acid as the core reagent, exposing mining stocks that use the processing method to sudden supply uncertainty.

Pro Medicus (ASX:PME) jumped 4.61% on renewing a five-year, $37 million contract with leading academic health system Northwestern Medicine.

Monash IVF (ASX:MVF) surged 16.54% after the Soul Patts consortium made a fresh offer to buy the company, upgrading its original price 30% to $0.9 a share.

MVF has until COB on Tuesday April 21 to decide. The consortium already holds about 19.6% of Monash shares.

Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) stayed flat (+0.25%) despite more than a dozen bidders lining up to buy its Californian boron operations, which could be worth as much as $2 billion.

A2 Milk (ASX:A2M) plunged 12.55% after downgrading its FY26 guidance based on supply chain disruptions, largely caused by the Iranian conflict.

A2M lowered its EBITDA margin guidance by about 1.5% and cut revenue to the low-to-mid double-digit range, rather than mid-double-digit growth as previously expected.

The company is also expecting FY26 NPAT to be essentially in line with FY25, offering no fresh growth.

Finally, EML Payments (ASX:EML) got hammered, plummeting 34.78% on downgrading its EBITDA guidance by about 18%.

Management says the problem is timing rather than lost opportunity, but also acknowledges softer consumer demand and macro uncertainty that's set to continue through Q4.

ASX Leaders

Today's best performing stocks (including small caps):

In the news...

PARKD (ASX:PKD) has closed out a strategic placement raising $220,000 at $0.03 a share, a 36.4% premium to its last closing price.

Leading New South Wales-based concrete construction company Azzurri subscribed for the full 4.9% of PKD equity on offer in the placement, citing PKD's prefabricated modular construction technology as the core draw.

"The data centre and industrial sectors present a significant opportunity in NSW and PARKD's technology is well suited to these applications," Azzurri Concrete MD Donato D'Angola said.

Prominence Energy (ASX:PRM) has kicked off a maiden round of on-ground exploration at its Gawler helium and hydrogen project in SA.

The company is using a low-cost program designed to screen large areas and drum-up drill-ready targets, targeting hydrogen, helium and methane.

Xref (ASX:XF1) has achieved some solid annual recurring revenue growth during the March quarter, raising ARR 54% year-on-year to $10.6 million.

XF1 also increased its sales by 4% to $4.5m, netted a positive EBITDA of $300,000 and reduced its operational expenses 28% y/y to $4.6m.

Prairie Lithium (ASX:PL9) is preparing to cut the ribbon at its commercial-scale direct lithium extraction processing facility in the second quarter this year, targeting formal commissioning for Q4 2026.

The first 150 tonnes per year of lithium carbonate equivalent are already set to be shipped to Hydro Lithium under an offtake agreement with the battery material manufacturer, setting PL9 up for an early pay off.

ASX Laggards

Today's worst performing stocks (including small caps):

Closing Bell: ASX braces for more geopolitical chaos as US blocks Strait of Hormuz | Stockhead