Strait of Hormuz Traffic Halts After Brief Surge Amid Attacks and Closures

At least 20 ships, including oil tankers, dry bulk carriers, and container ships, transited the strait on Saturday, according to data from LSEG. Traffic halted on Sunday following several incidents, with only seven ships crossing on Monday.

Oil prices increased about 6% on Monday as the low traffic persisted. -brokered ceasefire in Lebanon. Tehran then stated it closed the sea lane on Saturday after officials refused to lift the blockade of Iran's ports.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard fired on a tanker on Saturday, and an unknown projectile hit a container ship, according to incident reports from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre. The vessels were apparently Indian. Officials stated on Saturday they were deeply concerned about the attacks on the two ships.

Navy fired on an Iranian cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman on Sunday, after which Marines took control of the vessel. Blockade. The incidents demonstrated that the security situation in the sea lane remains dangerous, with traffic picking up briefly before slowing again.

One notable transit on Saturday involved the oil tanker FPMC C Lord, loaded with 2 million barrels of Saudi crude bound for Taiwan, according to LSEG data. Sources reported that the weekend attacks and closure reversed an initial uptick in transits following Iran's Friday announcement.

The situation returned to low activity levels by Sunday, with minimal crossings on Monday despite the slight increase. Multiple sources confirmed the sequence of events, including the brief surge and subsequent halt in traffic.