Fearless of violent attacks from Iran! Oil shipping volume in Strait of Hormuz rises instead of decreasing

Crude oil flow has increased significantly this month, with more than 9 million barrels of crude oil per day passing through under the direct escort of the US military.

Despite the sharp increase in the number of attacks by Iran, the daily oil transportation volume in the Strait of Hormuz this month still exceeded 12 million barrels, exceeding the average level last month.

According to the New York Post, data from shipping tracking website TankerTracker.com and maritime analysis company Kpler show that although 26 ships were attacked in Hormuz in October, making it the most frequent period of attacks since the outbreak of the conflict, oil flow in the strait has increased instead of falling since September.

The U.S. Central Command pointed out that about 19 million barrels of oil passed through on Monday alone, and emphasized that the U.S. military will continue to maintain navigation safety. According to sources in the shipping industry, crew members can receive tens of thousands of dollars in additional allowances for taking risks, and high profits have become the main reason for maintaining shipping capacity.

However, with Iran launching a number of serious attacks recently, trade supply chains have shown signs of being disrupted. Kpler statistics show that nearly 23 million barrels of oil passed through last Thursday, but by Wednesday this had plummeted to one-tenth; the latest six-day average was less than 4.6 million barrels per day.

Coupled with the Houthi movement's continued attacks on Saudi Arabia's energy facilities, geopolitical risks in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait remain high, transshipment volumes in the Strait remain sluggish, and the price of international benchmark Brent crude oil (Brent) remains at a high of US$104 per barrel.