INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A Ball State University economist said the economic impact of the war with Iran will persist even if the war ends soon.

Iranian forces have continued to block the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway separating Iran from Oman and the United Arab Emirates that is the sole path into the Persian Gulf. About 20% of the world’s oil exports are shipped through the strait.

In an interview with News 8 for Sunday’s “All INdiana Politics,” Michael Hicks, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at the university in Muncie, said oil is a worldwide commodity. Even though the United States produced 22% of the world’s oil in 2025, according to the Energy Information Administration, Hicks said the over...