Beijing on Monday reiterated its call for the U.S. and Israel to immediately cease military operations against Iran, warning the global economy could be imperiled as the war expanded to multiple Middle Eastern countries and threatened shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Around 20 per cent of the world’s oil and gas supply passes through the Persian Gulf into the Arabian Sea before it’s transported to destinations around the world, making the Strait and its adjacent waters “vital internatio