Shipping traffic through Strait of Hormuz rises slightly

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz saw a slight increase despite ongoing tensions between the US and Iran, according to data released on Thursday. The number of visible commodity vessel transits at Hormuz totaled 10 on Wednesday, up from eight the previous day, although this remained below the 10-day moving average of around 15 vessels.

The vessels included two medium-range fuel tankers, a liquefied petroleum gas carrier, a Panamax-sized tanker, and three handymax-sized tankers entering from the Gulf of Oman, while an Iran medium-range fuel tanker, a bitumen tanker, and a bulk carrier exited through the waterway from the Gulf. Iran and Oman are still negotiating the terms of an agreement regarding the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran's Revolutionary Guards stating they had reached an understanding on sharing the waterway and its revenue.

Meanwhile, traffic at the Bab el-Mandeb strait slowed for a second consecutive day, with only 19 commodity vessels passing through on Wednesday. Of these, six tankers, including a very large crude carrier, exited the strait, down from 24 vessels the day before. Some vessels may have their transponders turned off, potentially leading to undercounts in the traffic data.