Strait of Hormuz traffic nears standstill

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell to near-standstill levels on August 14 after two more vessels were attacked in the strategic waterway, while the United States said it could maintain its naval blockade of Iranian ports indefinitely.

According to data analysed by ship-tracking firm Kpler, only a small number of vessels were recorded passing through the narrow strait on August 14. They included a grain ship entering Iranian waters and an empty dry-bulk vessel travelling in the opposite direction, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

A separate empty liquefied petroleum gas tanker was also recorded entering the Gulf through the strait. No crude oil shipments were visible in the data for August 14.

Nine vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz on August 13, compared with five the previous day. However, the figure remained below the average of 12 vessels recorded during August.

Some vessels may have travelled through the waterway without being detected after switching off their tracking transponders. Even so, current traffic levels remain far below those recorded before the war between the United States, Israel and Iran began in February.

More than 130 vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz each day before the conflict, highlighting the scale of the disruption to one of the world’s most important maritime energy routes.

The decline in shipping comes amid heightened tensions in the waterway, with two more vessels reportedly attacked on August 14 and Washington signalling that its naval blockade of Iranian ports could remain in place indefinitely.

By Sabina Mammadli