Overview
- A Japanese supertanker linked to Idemitsu crossed the Strait of Hormuz after coordinating with Tehran, which Tokyo called a positive step though free passage remains limited.
- Overall traffic has collapsed to about 5% of normal with only 154 ship transits in March, cutting flows that once carried roughly 15 million barrels of oil a day.
- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has funneled ships onto coastal routes and marked the old main lane a “zone of danger,” and most recent transits now hug Iranian waters.
- The United States has enforced a blockade on vessels to and from Iranian ports and says it has turned back at least 38 ships, yet many transiting vessels still load in Iran and follow Iran’s routes.
- The World Bank reports a 10.1 million barrel-per-day loss in March and sharp price jumps, including a doubling of jet fuel in Singapore and big gains in LNG, urea and Brent, which is squeezing Asian buyers and supply chains.