Weekend ship traffic through Strait of Hormuz falls to 12 vessels

Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz declined sharply over the weekend, with 12 commodity vessels transiting the waterway on Saturday and Sunday, according to shipping data cited by Reuters. The figure is down by nearly two-thirds from the 35 vessels that passed through the strait the previous weekend.

The drop in traffic coincided with remarks by Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who said on Sunday that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed "until the US fulfils its commitments" under an interim peace memorandum of understanding signed in June. Ghalibaf's statement indicates that the closure remains in effect pending what Tehran describes as the implementation of the agreement's terms.

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, and it serves as a key route for global energy and commodity shipping. Movements through the strait are closely monitored because of the volume of trade that depends on the passage.

The June interim peace memorandum referenced by Ghalibaf was described as an understanding between the parties, though the article did not detail its specific provisions or the commitments Iran says remain unfulfilled. The weekend shipping figures represent the latest available data on traffic through the strait.

According to Mehr News, which cited the Reuters report and shipping data, the decline in transits follows the continued closure announced by Iranian officials. The report did not indicate when traffic might return to previous levels or what steps would be required for the strait to reopen.