Commodity shipping through the Strait of Hormuz fell sharply below its recent average on Wednesday, according to preliminary vessel-tracking data cited by Middle East Eye.
The data, provided by Kpler, recorded six commodity vessels transiting the strategic waterway during the day. That represented a decline of five vessels from Tuesday, when 11 such ships were recorded making the passage.
Wednesday’s preliminary count was also less than half the average observed over the preceding 10 days. Around 13 commodity vessels per day crossed the strait on average during that period, compared with the six recorded on Wednesday.
The vessels identified in Wednesday’s traffic comprised several ship classes. Two were very large gas carriers, while another two were long-range tankers. A Supramax tanker and a Panamax tanker accounted for the remaining two vessels in the preliminary tally.
The data therefore indicated a decrease both in comparison with the immediately preceding day and against the wider 10-day benchmark. The decline from 11 vessels on Tuesday to six on Wednesday amounted to a reduction of nearly half in the daily count, while the difference from the recent average was about seven vessels.
However, the number remains provisional and may be revised. Some ships switch off their transponders while underway in order to reduce their detectability, meaning they may not appear immediately in vessel-tracking information. Any such ships identified later could change the final total for Wednesday.
Middle East Eye reported the figures as an initial indication of commodity vessel movements through the Strait of Hormuz. Based on the available Kpler data, Wednesday’s recorded traffic was lower than both the previous day’s level and the average daily count across the latest 10-day period.
Reporting attribution: based on reporting by Middle East Eye — original source: https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/shipping-traffic-hormuz-strait-below-10-day-average-data-shows.