Platts ' Dubai benchmark, which once priced about 18 million barrels per day, is now under severe strain as Hormuz disruptions halt exports and disconnect it from physical oil flows. The benchmark had been a key pricing tool for Middle Eastern crude, linking UAE, Oman, and Qatar production to global markets. With tanker traffic slowed dramatically, the system is grappling with how to price oil that cannot be loaded. Market participants told Reuters that the benchmark is effectively broken, prompting some to step back from trading Dubai-linked cargoes or derivatives. Platts has cut its deliverable grades from five to two—Murban and Oman—reducing supply in the pricing basket by roughly 40%. In March, TotalEnergies ' trading arm spent about $4 billion on Dubai partials, taking delivery of 77 of 82 cargoes and exerting outsized influence on the Market on Close process. The market participants' assessment that the benchmark is effectively broken underscores the fragility of a system built on thin liquidity and concentrated trading. Platts' decision to suspend negative adjustments in March further illustrates the need to maintain a floor for Murban when it remains one of the few grades still available. The shift toward Murban dominance reflects broader supply and refinery dynamics, with Asian refiners increasingly able to process heavier crudes. To restore confidence, the benchmark may need structural reforms and greater participation, while buyers in Asia look to Brent-linked contracts as an alternative.