Shafaq News- Hurmoz

Six oil tankers, including two Chinese vessels, one Greek ship, and three tankers from Saudi Arabia and Iraq, transited the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, ahead of US-Iran talks in Pakistan, according to maritime data cited by Bloomberg.

Earlier today, Data shared by S&P Global showed that no crude oil was loaded at key ports linked to the Strait, including facilities in Iraq, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. Vessel traffic through the strategic waterway also declined markedly, falling to 12 ships on April 9 from an average of about 135 daily crossings.

The slowdown affected an estimated 14.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil and condensates, the data showed, while Iranian crude exports were recorded at about 1.38 million bpd over the same period.

The Strait of Hormuz, which carries roughly 20% of global oil supply, was effectively closed after US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. Despite a previously granted exemption allowing Iraqi oil tankers to transit the Strait, Iraq’s oil sector saw a sharp downturn, with production falling from about 3.5 million bpd to around 1.3 million bpd, while exports declined to roughly 800,000 bpd.