Strait of Hormuz Shipping Slumps Amid US-Iran Tensions

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has plummeted in recent weeks due to ongoing tensions between the US and Iran in the Persian Gulf region. According to data from analytics firm Kpler, only a fraction of the usual traffic is moving through the strategic waterway. Just 17 vessels carrying commodity cargoes passed through the strait this weekend, down from 37 a week earlier.

The decline in shipping comes as Middle Eastern producers continue to export oil on tankers that have switched off their transponders. The 'Pineos', a very large crude carrier, was seen transferring 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil to another vessel off the coast of Fujairah in the UAE. The cargo is expected to head to China.

Before the war between the US, Israel, and Iran began on February 28, around 125 large commercial vessels typically passed through the Strait of Hormuz each day. However, recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Aramco's East-West Pipeline have prompted the state energy company to increase shipments through the strait in September and October.