Hormuz traffic slows further after US threat on Iran

Following an attack on two more ships in the Strait of Hormuz, transit through the waterway appeared to have slowed significantly on Friday, according to reports from London and Panama City. The United States announced it could maintain a naval blockade of Iran indefinitely, threatening further economic damage. Since the ceasefire broke down in June, Iran has resumed attacks on vessels they claim are trespassing without permission.

Two UAE vessels were attacked en route through the strait on Thursday evening, with the UAE government blaming Iran, which offered no immediate response. On Friday, only two vessels successfully passed through the narrow waterway, down from nine on Thursday. The figures are far below the daily average of 130 ships that traversed the strait before the U.S.-led war against Iran began in February.

Iran's ability to restrict shipping through the strait is a key bargaining chip in ongoing negotiations, according to Torbjorn Solvedt, a Middle East analyst with Verisk Maplecroft. In response to the attacks, the U.S. pledged new measures against Iran in the coming week, including financial damage. U.S. President Donald Trump faces pressure at home, with high fuel prices affecting his approval ratings and potentially undermining his party's control of Congress in November's midterm elections.

Iran has its own demands for the strait to reopen, including removing economic sanctions and releasing frozen Iranian assets. A parliamentary committee in Iran approved a plan to ban U.S., Israeli, and hostile countries' assets and equipment from the strait.