Hormuz Southern Route Transits Drop to Single Digits

Transits Plunge After Renewed Attacks

Commercial tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply following a fresh exchange of attacks between the United States and Iran, according to guidance issued by tanker owners’ association INTERTANKO. The bulletin, sent to members on Friday and reported by gCaptain, said vessel transits along the southern route off Oman’s coast had dropped into single digits after commercial shipping came under attack on July 7, prompting U.S. retaliatory strikes.

Northern Route Also Affected

Traffic along the northern route near Iran has held above 20 vessels a day, INTERTANKO said, but that figure remains well below the more than 70 daily transits recorded after the June ceasefire between Washington and Tehran collapsed into renewed hostilities. The association described the latest round of strikes as more intense and geographically wider than earlier breakdowns of the ceasefire, pointing to attacks that also affected Bahrain and Kuwait.

Region ‘Relatively Quiet’ for Now

Despite the escalation, INTERTANKO noted that the Gulf appeared relatively quiet at the time its guidance was issued, following two days of strikes. The group also said technical talks between U.S. and Iranian officials were continuing in parallel with the fighting, covering both nuclear issues and longer-term arrangements for shipping through the Gulf.

Evacuation Plan Still on Hold

Separately, the International Maritime Organization’s proposed plan for evacuating seafarers from the region remains on hold, according to the INTERTANKO update. The plan has not been activated despite the renewed military exchanges, leaving crews aboard vessels transiting or anchored near the Strait exposed to ongoing uncertainty.

The drop in southern-route transits adds to a period of volatility for tankers operating in one of the world’s most critical chokepoints, through which a substantial share of global oil shipments pass. Fleet operators and charterers are likely to continue monitoring INTERTANKO’s guidance closely as they weigh routing decisions, insurance costs, and crew safety in the Gulf.

Elsewhere in the region, Iraq’s government has moved to advance a pipeline agreement with Syria that would route oil exports to the Mediterranean — one of several longer-term diversification efforts aimed at reducing dependence on the strait.