Strait of Hormuz ship crossings remain in single digits

The Strait of Hormuz experienced a significant decline in vessel transits, with only four ships crossing on Tuesday, down from seven the previous day, according to preliminary shipping data released on Wednesday. This drop marks a stark contrast to the 10-day average of 18 transits, which was well below the norm. The Strait of Hormuz, which handles one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supply prior to the Iran conflict, saw a sharp decrease in traffic following intensified regional attacks.

On Tuesday, two vessels exited and two entered the waterway, but no very large crude carriers or liquefied natural gas tankers were involved. It is possible that some ships were sailing through the Strait of Hormuz with their transponders turned off and therefore were not counted. Among the ships that did pass through were the Salute, a very large gas carrier carrying around 470,000 barrels of liquefied petroleum gas, and the Nautilus, a Panamax-sized tanker carrying approximately 510,000 barrels of naphtha.

Both exiting ships utilized the Iranian route. The number of vessels traversing the Bab el-Mandeb Strait remained stable at 22, slightly unchanged from the previous day's figure of 24.