Strait of Hormuz Tanker Traffic Falls to One Transit Per Day as Iran Attacks Shipping and US Blockade Continues

Tanker crossings through the Strait of Hormuz fell to just one on Thursday, the lowest daily total since May 7 and down from three the day before, according to Kpler shiptracking data reported by Reuters, The National, and OilPrice.com 123. No vessels entered the strait that day; the sole transit was the VLCC New Giant, carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi Basrah crude, which exited toward China's Rizhao port with arrival expected by mid-August 12. Bab el-Mandeb strait crossings moved the opposite direction, rising to 32 that day from 26 the day before, as Saudi Aramco began offering alternative crude loadings from Egypt's Mediterranean port of Sidi Kerir and tankers including the naphtha carrier Torm Innovation rerouted toward the Suez Canal to avoid the Houthi threat in the Red Sea 12. The US military said it had completed a 13th consecutive night of strikes on Iran, and crude prices climbed back above $100 a barrel 123. Marine Insight reported preliminary data showing crossings recovering to three per day on July 22 through 24 1.