The chart above has been updated to reflect latest changes.
Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz dropped 95% after U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, raising fears of supply disruption to one of the world’s most crucial energy routes.
Ship-tracking data from the IMF Port Watch show vessels avoiding the narrow waterway and rerouting around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, as insurers and shipping companies warn that the Gulf has become too risky for normal transit.
Container traffic through the strait fell dramatically after the attacks, with some days seeing almost no vessels passing through the corridor, compared a month ago.
Major carriers including Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd have suspended or diverted voyages away from the region, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical chokepoint that carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply, so even partial disruptions can quickly affect global markets.
Oil prices jump as Middle East tensions escalated on March 8
Concerns are growing around severe supply shortages and heightened geopolitical tensions in the region.
Oil prices are already reacting to news around the region. Brent crude already crossed $100 a barrel on March 8, reaching a 19-month high but have retreated since. After President Donald Trump warned Iran that the U.S. would respond “twenty times harder” if it blocked oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, oil prices have started pulling back.
While Saudi oil giant Aramco warns the war could have “catastrophic consequences” for oil markets, it has offered more than 4 million barrels of Saudi crude in rare tenders.
Group of Seven (G7) nations discussed releasing strategic oil reserves Tuesday but made no decision.
Reassurance that several countries could tap emergency crude reserves to offset supply disruptions helped calm markets.
Earlier in March, OPEC+ (Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, Oman) reaffirmed a “cautious approach” by pausing production increases through the first quarter of 2026 to stabilize volatile markets.