Strait of Hormuz shipping traffic slightly rises amid Iran-Oman talks

Shipping traffic at the Strait of Hormuz experienced a slight increase, despite ongoing tensions between the United States and Iran, as businesses kept an eye on Iran-Oman discussions over the waterway, according to data released on Thursday. The total number of visible commodity vessel transits at Hormuz stood at 10 on Wednesday, up from eight on the prior day, but still below the 10-day moving average of approximately 15 vessels.

This modest rise was attributed to two medium-range fuel tankers, a liquefied petroleum gas carrier, a Panamax-sized tanker, and three handymax-sized tankers entering the strait from the Gulf of Oman. Simultaneously, Iran and Oman were still negotiating the specifics of an accord regarding the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards stating they had reached an agreement on how to share the waterway and its revenue.

Conversely, traffic at the Bab el-Mandeb strait slowed down for the second consecutive day, with 19 commodity vessels passing through on Wednesday. This included six tankers exiting, such as a very large crude carrier, compared to 24 vessels on the previous day, as indicated by Kpler data. It is possible that some vessels sailing through these key waterways may have their transponders turned off, resulting in potential undercounts.