Three Supertankers Cross the Strait of Hormuz, Oil Market Receives Positive Signal

Global oil shipping activity is beginning to show signs of recovery after being halted due to geopolitical conflict. Three giant supertankers loaded with crude oil were reported to have crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday (11/4/2026), just hours after a Greek tanker had passed through the route earlier. Two of the three vessels are Chinese supertankers carrying crude oil cargoes from the Persian Gulf region. This movement represents a significant increase in oil shipping traffic, several days after the announcement of a fragile ceasefire between the United States (US) and Iran. Interestingly, none of the vessels are carrying oil from Iran or have any direct connection to the country. Nevertheless, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz is crucial for global oil trade. The previous closure of this route had removed millions of barrels of supply from the world market, thereby tightening physical oil availability in various regions. In the near future, the United States (US) and Iran are scheduled to hold peace talks in Islamabad. This is positive news for Beijing, but it also reflects that China has been impacted by supply pressures due to the conflict. However, the current shipping volume is still far below normal conditions during peaceful times. The three vessels have a total capacity of around 6 million barrels of crude oil. In comparison, Iran—the only country still actively shipping oil through the route—recorded exports of about 1.7 million barrels per day last month. This figure indicates that the current shipping volume is only about half of normal levels, and that too only occurred in one day.