Hormuz Shipping Traffic Remains Stuck in Single Digits

Ship-tracking data cited by Reuters shows tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains sharply reduced, with just four vessels transiting the chokepoint on Tuesday versus seven the day before. The publicly available counts do not capture vessels that switch off their geolocation beacons, so visible traffic may understate total movements. Of the four vessels recorded on Tuesday, two were inbound and two outbound. None of those crossings involved very large crude carriers or LNG carriers; trackers identified one ship carrying liquefied petroleum gas and another loaded with naphtha. Separately, Windward logged a single tanker entering the strait on September 15, an oil product carrier. Reuters put the 10-day moving average at 18, noting it has fallen from double digits into single digits over recent days. Industry participants attribute the pullback to growing caution among shipowners and energy exporters after a resurgence of hostilities, attacks on tankers and the expanding threat posed by Iran-aligned Houthi forces in the Red Sea. The Houthis’ recent strike on Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline prompted crude loading cancellations at Yanbu and has led Saudi authorities to consider routing more shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. Analysts and operators say whether that can be done quickly is uncertain given current crossing rates. Estimates of how long it will take Aramco to repair the East-West pipeline range from a few days to several weeks, according to the reporting. Even allowing for vessels operating with transponders turned off, available data indicate traffic through Hormuz remains severely subdued compared with pre-war norms.