Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has collapsed to near-zero levels following a regional escalation, with IMF PortWatch recording just four vessel transits on May 24, 2026. The narrow waterway, which normally sees about 95 transits per day, now carries roughly 4% of its pre-crisis volume, according to data aggregated by Straits.
The International Monetary Fund's PortWatch platform serves as the official resolution source for assessing when traffic returns to normal levels in the chokepoint. The data, published through the platform's transit-calls dashboard and downloadable files, provides the benchmark for measuring a recovery.
No official confirmation has been issued that transit numbers have approached the 60-vessel threshold that would indicate a return to normal operations. The gap between current traffic and that benchmark remains substantial, with the most recent published data showing well under a tenth of normal volume.
The next key development to watch is whether diplomatic channels produce a reopening announcement or a nuclear deal between the United States and Iran. Without such a catalyst, shipping lines appear unlikely to resume normal passage through the strait.
