Commodity vessel traffic through Strait of Hormuz falls to 12 over weekend amid ongoing tensions

A total of 12 commodity vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday and Sunday, according to data from analytics firm Kpler, compared with 35 the week before. The reduction follows a broader decline in traffic through the waterway, which normally carries about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments.

Kpler reported that four of the tracked ships were tankers loaded with refined oil products, while two were empty bulk carriers. Two small oil tankers entered the Gulf, and on Saturday five vessels carrying agricultural goods, liquefied petroleum gas and fertilizer left the region, accompanied by an empty very large gas carrier.

Saudi Arabia has increased crude exports through the strait after attacks on its East-West pipeline, raising output to over 4 million barrels per day in September, up from 2.4 million barrels per day in August, according to provisional Kpler figures. In the week of September 13, 13 tankers, mainly very large crude carriers, moved about 34 million barrels of oil through the strait, with Saudi shipments accounting for roughly half of the volume and Iraq for about 35%.

"Middle East oil flows remain surprisingly strong despite the disruption to Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline," JPMorgan analysts wrote in a note dated September 18. They added that average oil flows over the preceding ten days were 17.1 million barrels per day, about 6.1 million barrels per day below the 2025 average, and highlighted a notable increase in Saudi shipments, which averaged 2.9 million barrels per day in the last six days, up from 700,000 barrels per day in August.