Gate News, April 14 — Global shipbroking firm BRS reported that the US blockade of Iranian ports is steering tankers toward the Atlantic as vessels avoid the Strait of Hormuz. Now in its seventh week, the Iran conflict is reshaping global oil shipping flows, with a wave of empty tankers arriving in the Atlantic basin due to a slump in Middle East crude and refined product exports.
BRS noted that ceasefire optimism following US-Iranian talks in Pakistan was misplaced, as the US Navy has begun blocking traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports. Atlantic crude tanker freight markets (shipping rates) have dropped 20-30% since late March. The BBC reported that four Iran-linked ships crossed the strait by 15:30 GST on Tuesday, the second day of the blockade.
Neil Quilliam, a Middle East expert at Chatham House, said tanker traffic will choose to reroute flows even if an uneasy peace is reached, with vessel owners passing on costs. BRS warned that prolonged closure of Hormuz could trigger demand destruction and risk a global recession.
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