Oil Flows Contradiction: US Claims Normalized, But Data Says Otherwise
US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright claimed on Tuesday that oil flows from the Middle East have normalized, citing increased traffic at the Strait of Hormuz and pipeline upgrades. However, ship-tracking data contradicts this claim.
According to Wright, the seven-day average for oil leaving the Strait of Hormuz is around 9 million barrels per day, with Sunday's traffic alone exceeding pre-conflict averages. He also mentioned that combined with additional pipeline exports, total oil flows are averaging approximately 15 million barrels per day.
However, analysts and tanker traffic monitoring services question how the US Administration arrived at these numbers. Matt Smith from Kpler stated that 'it is not possible to reconcile the disparity between what we see and what he is quoting.' Kpler data shows a decline in vessel traffic at the Strait of Hormuz, with only six commodity vessels transiting the area on Monday.