SINGAPORE, Sept 16 (Reuters) - On Tuesday, only four vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz, a drop from seven the previous day. This number is significantly below the 10-day average of 18 vessels.
The decrease in traffic through this important waterway, which accounts for one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supply before the conflict in Iran, follows a rise in regional attacks.
On Tuesday, there were two ships leaving the strait and two ships entering, according to the initial shipping data.
Notably, there were no very large crude carriers or liquefied natural gas tankers reported in transit.
It's possible that some vessels may have sailed through the strait with their transponders switched off, meaning they wouldn't be included in the counts.
Among the ships, the very large gas carrier 'Salute' that carries about 470,000 barrels of liquefied petroleum gas exited through the Iranian route. Meanwhile, the Panamax-sized tanker 'Nautilus,' carrying around 510,000 barrels of naphtha, left via an untracked route.
The two vessels that entered the strait were both loaded; one was a short-range dirty products tanker and the other was a dry bulk carrier, both arriving through the Iranian route.
In contrast, the number of ships passing through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait was 22, only slightly lower than the 24 recorded the day before.