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Since February 28 - the day of the US-Israeli strikes against Iran - the Strait of Hormuz has been effectively paralyzed. Traffic has collapsed by 81% compared with levels at the start of the year: from 10.3 million gross tons a day to around one million.
On March 2, the Iranian Pasdaran officially confirmed the closure, threatening to strike any ships in transit.
On March 6, Teheran announced a partial reopening. But the conditions imposed made the announcement almost devoid of concrete effects, since ships linked to the United States and Israel remained excluded, while the markets failed to react. Insurance companies continue to block coverage and, without insurance, no shipowner ventures into the corridor. Actual traffic remains at 1% of normal.
The Iranian logic is first and foremost political, and then military: Teheran claims strategic control of the Strait, distinguishes between 'enemy' countries and others, and tries to ease international diplomatic pressure.
The countries most exposed to the blockage are those that depend on supplies from the Gulf without land-based alternatives: Japan and South Korea import around 70-95% of their crude oil via Hormuz. Above all Europe is suffering from the shutdown of Qatari LNG (liquefied natural gas). China, which buys over 50% of its oil from the Gulf region, is among the most vulnerable - although, for the time being, its cargoes seem to be passing through without being targeted.
The most recent update came on March 9: according to Bloomberg, the oil tanker Shenlong, operated by a Greek company, crossed the Strait with a cargo of around one million barrels of Saudi crude oil, one of the first large tankers to do so since traffic in the Strait of Hormuz came to a virtual standstill.
(©GreenMe.it 2026 / Managing Editor: Selma Keshkire - The Press Junction / Picture: ©Unsplash)