Shipping traffic through key Middle East waterways falls after Houthi attacks
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Shipping activity through the Bab el-Mandeb strait dropped sharply on Sunday after Yemen’s Houthi movement launched attacks on Saudi oil facilities along the Red Sea coast, while traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained at subdued levels despite a pause in US-Iran strikes, according to shipping data from Kpler.
Only 11 commodity vessels passed through Bab el-Mandeb on Sunday, the lowest level in months, highlighting growing disruption to one of the world’s most important maritime routes.
The Houthis, aligned with Tehran, have intensified attacks on shipping in the Red Sea as part of the wider regional conflict, targeting Saudi exports and adding further pressure to global energy flows already affected by disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
The slowdown contributed to a rise in physical crude oil prices across the Middle East, Europe and Africa, which reached two-month highs last week.
Of the vessels that crossed Bab el-Mandeb on Sunday, seven were oil tankers, including two very large crude carriers (VLCCs) heading to Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port to load crude. Among the vessels leaving the Red Sea was the Hong Kong-flagged VLCC New Explorer, carrying around two million barrels of Saudi and Emirati crude to China.
A second Hong Kong-flagged supertanker, the New Pearl, was also exiting the Red Sea carrying two million barrels of Saudi crude for China, marking the fourth Chinese VLCC to depart the area since the Houthis announced a naval blockade.
Meanwhile, transit through the Strait of Hormuz remained limited, with fewer than 10 commodity vessels passing daily over the weekend, according to Kpler data. Seven vessels crossed on Sunday, including three Iranian-linked oil product tankers.
The continued slowdown comes despite the US and Iran temporarily halting strikes, with shipping companies remaining cautious amid uncertainty over regional security and the risk of further attacks.
