Tankers turn back at Hormuz as crude jumps over 4% on US blockade
The Malawi-flagged tanker Rich Starry, 188 meters in length, turned around within minutes of approaching the strait, MarineTraffic reported
Two oil tankers reversed course as they approached the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, just hours after the US naval blockade against Iranian ports took effect, according to maritime tracking platform MarineTraffic. Brent crude for June delivery closed up 4.4% at $99.36 per barrel, while US benchmark WTI rose 2.6% to $99.08, according to Bloomberg.
The Malawi-flagged tanker Rich Starry, 188 meters in length, turned around within minutes of approaching the strait, MarineTraffic reported. The vessel had departed from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, bound for China. The second, identified as the Botswana-flagged Ostria at 175 meters, also changed course after nearing the area.
The blockade took effect at 2:00 p.m. GMT on Monday. US Central Command (CENTCOM) specified that it applies impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas but will not impede navigation for ships transiting to non-Iranian ports.
Thirty minutes after the blockade was activated, Trump posted an additional threat on Truth Social: Warning: If any of these ships come anywhere close to our BLOCKADE, they will be immediately ELIMINATED, using the same system of kill that we use against the drug dealers on boats at Sea. It is fast and brutal.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned that any military vessel approaching the strait would be considered a ceasefire violation and would be met with a severe response. Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on X that the so-called blockade would soon make Americans nostalgic for $4–$5 gas.
The secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization, Arsenio Dominguez, called both the US blockade and Iran’s toll collection illegal. He said only 11 ships had transited the strait in the previous two days, a fraction of the roughly 130 daily crossings before the war. More than 1,300 vessels remain stranded near the strait and some 20,000 mariners are trapped, according to the organization.
Analytics firm Kpler noted that LNG tanker movements remain at a standstill, with operators awaiting clearer security guarantees before re-entering the route. US gasoline prices already average $4.12 per gallon, up more than $1.20 since the start of the war, according to AAA. Trump acknowledged that oil and gasoline prices could remain elevated through November’s midterm elections, CNN reported.
OPEC lowered its world oil demand forecast for the second quarter by 500,000 barrels per day, citing the impact of the Middle East war.
