Strait of Hormuz weekly vessel traffic drops nearly 50%, Brent crude approaches $92/barrel

Odaily News The US-Iran conflict enters its tenth day, with Brent crude briefly reaching $91.63/barrel on Tuesday before retreating to $91.26/barrel at 5:00 PM Eastern Time. The US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.3% to $84.38/barrel.

Shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz continue, with vessel traffic falling to 127 ships in the week ending July 19, a decrease of nearly 50% from 248 ships in the week ending July 12. Indian state-owned refiners Indian Oil and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals have suspended crude oil loading from Iraq.

Maritime intelligence data shows that the US Navy escort corridor has been largely abandoned, with vessel operators mainly rerouting through the northern passage of Iran. Goldman Sachs estimates that crude oil shipments from the Persian Gulf have fallen to below 45% of pre-war levels.