Oil tanker traffic in Strait of Hormuz 'virtually halted'

Oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has "virtually halted" as a 60-day ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran is in jeopardy, CNN reported. In a report on July 8, Jorge Leon, head of geopolitical analysis at energy research firm Rystad Energy, stated that traffic appears to have come to a complete stop. He added that this de facto halt better reflects the current perception of risk than any statement from Washington or Tehran. According to energy data analytics firm Kpler, only four tankers passed through the strait today. Navin Das, a senior crude oil analyst at Kpler, said the daily average was about 32 tankers since the U.S. and Iran agreed to a 60-day ceasefire on June 17. While this is about three times the daily average from the start of the conflict in February until the June 17 agreement, it remains well below pre-war levels.