Only three commodity vessels moved through the Strait of Hormuz in the past day, preliminary tanker-tracking data by Kpler showed on Wednesday, as the oil market weighs the potential resumption of U.S.-Iran talks against continued disruptions in the Middle East.
The three commodity vessels, which included one Panamax oil tanker, transited the Strait of Hormuz outbound, according to Kpler’s data cited by Reuters.
The observable traffic on Tuesday was below Monday’s four vessels that transited Hormuz, and well below the 10-day moving average of roughly 15 vessel transits, the data showed.
Set OilPrice.com as a preferred source in Google .
The tracking excludes any movements of ships that have switched off their positioning systems to avoid detection or becoming targets of attacks.
Owners and energy exporters are becoming increasingly careful navigating through the Strait of Hormuz amid re-escalation of hostilities this month, including strikes on tankers, the threat from the Iran-aligned Houthis in the Red Sea, and the temporary shutdown of the East-West onshore pipeline in Saudi Arabia.
The Kingdom on Tuesday restored partial service on the East-West that allows it to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and ship crude oil out of the Red Sea port of Yanbu.
Observable traffic at the Bab el-Mandeb Strait appears to be more consistent, with 22 commodity vessels moving in either direction in and out of the Red Sea, according to Kpler’s data compiled by Reuters.
On average, about 26 vessels have transited each day between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden over the past 10 days.
Daily traffic of commodity vessels at Hormuz with AIS positioning switched on has stayed in the single digits for days, amid persistent concerns about security.
Meanwhile, the oil market awaits developments on the diplomacy front this week as U.S. and Iran representatives are using the UN General Assembly in New York for discussions on the sidelines.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
More Top Reads From Oilprice.com
- $100 Brent Keeping China’s Oil Buying in Check, Goldman Says
- Oil Set for Longest Losing Streak Since August 2025
- Asia’s Crude Imports Hit Highest Level Since the Iran War Began
