Analysts also warn that Trump’s ‘joint venture’ plan with Iran could formalise a grey zone, while Beijing balances its roles as mediator and energy importer
3-MIN READ3-MIN ListenHe Huifengin GuangdongPublished: 11:00pm, 9 Apr 2026While the world remains divided over the unresolved issue of toll collection in the Strait of Hormuz, some Chinese experts have proposed pegging fees to oil prices or using exportable digital tokens from China for settlements.
If tolls were to be imposed in this strategic chokepoint for global energy trade, settlement mechanisms could be “innovative”, said Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University.
“Tolls and settlements could be tied to oil prices or use tokens from China. We must coordinate across computing power, oil, dollars and security,” he said, as many eyes are now on this critical issue arising from the temporarily halted US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
However, other observers also warned that a toll system would likely function as just a temporary and differentiated wartime mechanism, rather than a long-term, jointly managed regime envisaged by US President Donald Trump.
In response to a question from an ABC News journalist, regarding whether he approved of Iran charging a toll on ships transiting the strait, the president said: “We’re thinking of doing it as a joint venture. It’s a way of securing it – also securing it from lots of other people.”
