The U.S. military has directed 27 vessels to turn around or return to an Iranian port since the beginning of its blockade around the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Central Command said in a statement on X on Monday. (Reporting by Katharine Jackson and Doina Chiacu; editing by Michelle Nichols) [Read more]

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained at a virtual standstill on Monday with just three crossings in the space of 12 hours, according to shipping data. The oil products tanker Nero, which is under British sanctions for Russian oil activities, left the Gulf and was sailing through the Strait, according to satellite analysis from data analytics specialists SynMax and tracking data from the Kpler platform. Two other ships - a chemical tanker and a liquefied petroleum gas [Read more]

A consistent theme in global oil markets since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran is that the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz will be short-lived, and therefore so will the disruption to the supply of crude and refined products. That expectation has consistently been reflected in pricing for crude oil futures, which have risen sharply since the conflict began on February 28, but are still well short of the highs reached in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In effect, the [Read more]

China's crude oil imports from its biggest supplier, Russia, were 10.07 million tons in March, or 2.37 million barrels per day, up 14% year-on-year, according to customs data published on Saturday. * Imports from Brazil surged 154% to 5.03 million tons in March, or 1.18 million barrels per day. * Imports from China's second-biggest supplier, Saudi Arabia, were 5.86 million tons in March, or 1.38 million bpd, down 31% from the same period last year. * Imports from Malaysia, the largest [Read more]

Oil prices rebounded more than 6% on Monday after tumbling more than 9% on Friday on news the Strait of Hormuz is closed again after both the U.S. and Iran said the other party had violated their ceasefire deal by attacking ships over the weekend. Brent crude futures jumped $6.11, or 6.76%, to $96.49 a barrel by 2327 GMT and U.S. West Texas Intermediate was at $90.38 a barrel, up $6.53, or 7.79%. The U.S. military had seized an Iranian cargo ship that tried to run its blockade, U.S. [Read more]

More than 20 vessels passed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, data from shipping analytics firm Kpler showed, the highest number of ships crossing the waterway since March 1. * Among the vessels that made it through on Saturday, five of them last loaded cargoes from Iran ranging from oil products to metals. Three of them are liquefied petroleum gas carriers with one each heading to China and India. * Panama-flagged tanker Crave, carrying LPG from the United Arab Emirates, is heading to [Read more]

Iran's top joint military command, Khatam al-Anbiya, accused the U.S. of violating a ceasefire by firing at one of Iran's commercial ships in the Gulf of Oman, vowing to retaliate. State media quoted a Khatam al-Anbiya spokesperson as saying early on Monday that the vessel was en route from China to Iran. "We warn that the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran will soon respond and retaliate against this armed piracy by the U.S. military," the spokesperson said. (Reporting by [Read more]

Iran’s armed forces turned back two tankers attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday after issuing warnings, semi-official Tasnim news agency reported, saying this came as a result of the continuing U.S. maritime blockade on Iran. The vessels, sailing under the flags of Botswana and Angola, were forced to change course after what the report described as “unauthorised transit” through the strategic waterway. (Reporting by Dubai Newsroom Editing by Peter Graff) [Read more]

* Tehran says gaps remain over nuclear issues, Strait of Hormuz * Trump cites 'very good conversations' * Iran reimposes Strait of Hormuz closure * Shipping remains uncertain after vessels report gunfire By Trevor Hunnicutt, Ariba Shahid and Muhammad Al Gebaly WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD, April 19 - Iran's top negotiator said recent talks with the U.S. had made progress but gaps remained over nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz, while President Donald Trump cited "very good conversations" with [Read more]