Hormuz traffic hits lowest level in two months as tanker attacks surge

Transit through the Strait of Hormuz has plummeted to its lowest level in over two months, following a surge in attacks on tankers in the critical waterway, according to shipping data. Seven commodity ships passed through the strait on Tuesday, marking the lowest figure since July 23, according to analytics firm Kpler. Crude oil shipments through the strait have dropped by 27% from a wartime high the week prior, now at around 10.1 million barrels a day, back to its September average but only 74% of prewar levels.

Most of the decline is attributed to ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman, where cargoes are transferred between tankers. However, exports from the Gulf of Oman and the Red Sea have surged to 6.7 million barrels a day, more than double prewar levels, compensating for lost supply from Hormuz and helping maintain overall crude exports at prewar levels.

Despite a slight increase in vessel traffic to 10 on Wednesday, the number remains far below the daily average of over 20 vessels seen on Sunday and Monday. The number of vessels entering the strait outpaced those exiting in the past two days, though the figures do not account for vessels crossing with their Automatic Identification System turned off to evade detection.

LSEG data shows eight vessels crossed the strait on Tuesday, with an even split between entries and exits, down from 14 on the previous day. These included five oil tankers and the liquefied natural gas tanker Al Mafyar, which loaded in Qatar and was headed to Port Qasim in Pakistan. Tanker attacks in Hormuz have reached their highest level since the Iran war began last February 28, according to maritime security sources tracking incidents.

In the latest incident, projectiles struck a tanker 94km north of Qatar's Madinat ash Shamal, resulting in casualties, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency on Wednesday. Prior to the Iran war, approximately 125 large commercial vessels passed through the strait each day, carrying a fifth of global crude oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.