WANA (Sep 01) – Maritime traffic data reveals a sharp decline in commercial vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz, falling to an average of just five ships per day. The notable drop follows a recent escalation in regional military conflicts.

 

According to data tracking the movement of fuel and essential goods, the recent average of five transits per day marks a significant decrease from the decade-prior average of approximately 14 vessels daily.

 

On Monday, activity dropped further, with only four vessels entering the strait and a single vessel exiting.

 

An analysis by shipping data firm Kpler, reported by Al Mayadeen, indicates that recent transits have been largely restricted to smaller vessels, including two Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) tankers.

 

One of the tankers navigated through Iranian territorial waters, while the other proceeded toward India after disabling its automated identification and tracking systems (AIS).

 

The maritime slowdown comes amid intensifying armed clashes in the region. Following a U.S. strike on Iran’s Larak Island that resulted in casualties, Iranian armed forces launched retaliatory strikes targeting U.S. military infrastructure.

 

Iranian forces targeted support facilities and fighter jet hangars at the King Hussein and Al-Azraq airbases in Jordan, alongside U.S. helicopter positions and military personnel at Al-Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates.