90% of the World's Businesses Face the Biggest Hormuz Risk, UN Report Finds

UN Trade and Development says disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz could push small firms out of global value chains, even after trade volumes recover.

The agency calls the danger an exclusion effect. It argues that Hormuz risk lands hardest on companies that cannot spread costs across multiple suppliers, markets, and lenders.

Small Firms Carry the Heaviest Share of the Bill

Smaller companies sit under most of the world's economy. The report counts micro, small, and medium firms as 90% of global businesses, 70% of employment, and 50% of GDP, drawing on International Labour Organization figures.

The cost exposure for small and medium firms runs wider than that of larger rivals. Importing is the clearest case. Small firms in developing economies spend 19.4% of import value on customs fees, broker payments, and other requirements. Large firms spend 14.7%.

Electricity follows the same pattern. One in four small firms in developing economies pays more than 4.2% of sales for power, against 3.7% for large firms.

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