Breaking update: Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz slowed again, with only six commodity vessels crossing on Tuesday even as President Donald Trump insisted the waterway was open and operating.
The fresh data gives the Iran crisis a harder number to watch. Reuters, carried by Al-Monitor, reported Wednesday that Kpler data showed six commodity vessels crossed the strait on Tuesday by 0258 GMT, down from nine a day earlier and below a 10-day daily average of 11.
That matters because Washington and Tehran are now offering sharply different versions of the same crisis. Trump said Tuesday that no talks with Iran were taking place or scheduled, while also saying the U.S. naval blockade remained in force and that the Strait of Hormuz was open. Iran says the strait remains shut until Washington meets conditions Tehran says were included in the June memorandum of understanding.
The Open Claim Is Not Moving Ships Back
The Reuters traffic data suggests shipowners are still treating Hormuz as dangerous and politically unresolved. According to the report, Tuesday’s inbound traffic included an empty very large crude carrier moving along the Omani side of the strait, along with two smaller tankers. Two medium-range fuel tankers and a post-Panamax vessel exited the waterway.
Before the war, the Strait of Hormuz handled about a fifth of global crude oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. A drop to single-digit commodity vessel crossings is not normal traffic. It is the market voting with routes, insurance, and risk desks.
The same Reuters report said two Chinese shipping giants that previously carried roughly half of China’s Middle Eastern oil imports before the war have kept their tankers out of both the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb since late July, citing tanker tracker Vortexa and a ship broker. That adds another layer to the story: even where the strait is technically passable, major operators are still avoiding it.
Trump Says No Talks Are Planned
Al Jazeera reported that Trump wrote there were “no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled” with Iran. He also said the naval blockade of Iranian ports remained “in full force and effect” and claimed all mines in the strait had been removed or detonated.
Al Jazeera said the comments came as Iran and Oman continued talks over managing the strategic waterway, a process that has angered Washington because it could give Tehran a formal role in traffic rules. Qatar has said mediators are waiting for an expected Iran-Oman understanding before pushing Washington and Tehran back toward broader talks.
The rhetoric hardened further Wednesday. Al Jazeera’s live coverage said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed the United States was now “begging” to negotiate on Iranian conditions after failing to force Tehran to surrender.
Iran Still Links Hormuz To U.S. Concessions
Iran’s position remains tied to sanctions, frozen assets, and the U.S. blockade. Reuters, carried by KFGO, reported that Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said the strait would remain shut until the United States met conditions of the interim deal signed in June. Those conditions include lifting the blockade of Iranian ports, removing oil sanctions, releasing frozen Iranian assets, and ending threats and military operations on all fronts.
The 60-day window for a broader agreement has now expired. Reuters reported that Trump said he had no plans to extend it, while a senior Iranian official said Tehran was moving to a “fully offensive” military posture because of the diplomatic stalemate.
Why This Is A New Turn
The latest angle is not just that Iran says Hormuz is closed or that Trump says it is open. List25 has already covered those claims. The new point is measurable: fresh Kpler data shows traffic dropped to six commodity vessels on Tuesday, meaning the strait is still functioning far below normal despite Washington’s public claim that it is open.
That gap between political language and shipping behavior is now the crisis. If vessels keep avoiding Hormuz, oil and LNG markets will price the blockade as real no matter what either side says. If traffic rebounds, Trump’s claim will gain weight. For now, the numbers are still moving the other way.
Sources: Reuters via Al-Monitor; Al Jazeera; Reuters via KFGO.