Key facts
- Commodity vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz fell to a dozen over the weekend.
- This is down from 35 tankers and commodity carriers passing the chokepoint a week earlier.
- Data includes only tankers with transponders switched on; many turn them off to avoid detection.
- Kpler data showed only four tankers passing the Strait of Hormuz last Thursday, down from a 10-day moving average of 16.
- Saudi Arabia is exporting crude at a rate of 2.9 million barrels daily via Hormuz.
- Flows of Saudi oil from the Red Sea port of Yanbu have been compromised by Houthi strikes.
Commodity vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has declined significantly, with only a dozen vessels making the passage over the weekend, according to Reuters. This is a sharp drop from the 35 tankers and other commodity carriers that passed through the chokepoint a week prior. The data, which includes only vessels with their transponders switched on, suggests that Iran's influence on movement in the waterway may be tightening.
Earlier data from Kpler indicated that only four tankers passed the Strait of Hormuz last Thursday, a decrease from the 10-day moving average of 16 vessels. Over the week ending September 13, only 13 very large crude carriers exited the strait, Kpler also reported.
Despite these figures, JP Morgan noted that tanker traffic is improving, particularly for Saudi Arabia. The investment bank stated in a note on Friday that Middle East oil flows remain strong, with Saudi Arabia exporting crude at a rate of 2.9 million barrels daily via Hormuz. Saudi oil is transported by pipeline to Ras Tanurah port and then shipped to the Gulf of Oman before being transferred to larger tankers. However, flows from Saudi Arabia's Red Sea port of Yanbu have been affected by recent Houthi strikes, which targeted the port that had become a primary outlet for crude oil following previous disruptions at Hormuz.