The number of ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz has declined in recent days, according to data tracked by the International Monetary Fund's Portwatch platform. The strait, a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman, handles roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply daily.
Portwatch, which aggregates vessel-tracking data, provides near-real-time counts of commercial ships passing through the chokepoint. The decline in daily transits comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions in the region.
The threshold of 60 ships in a single day has not been reported in the latest available data. Analysts have pointed to several factors that may be reducing traffic, including rerouting by commercial operators and shifts in crude oil demand.
Shipping firms have been adjusting routes in response to broader security concerns across the Middle East. While no single trigger has been identified, the cumulative effect has been a noticeable drop in vessel count through the strait.
The next update from Portwatch will provide the clearest picture of whether daily traffic can recover to the 60-ship level before the end of the month. The data covers all commercial vessel types and is updated on a rolling basis.
