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Shipping traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait fell to its lowest level in months on Sunday after Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels attacked Saudi oil installations along the Red Sea coast, adding to growing risks for global energy and trade flows.
Only 11 commodity vessels passed through the strategic waterway on Sunday, according to shipping data from Kpler reviewed by Reuters.
The sharp decline came as the US-Iran conflict continued to disrupt maritime traffic across two of the world’s most important energy chokepoints — the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz also remained extremely low over the weekend, despite the United States and Iran pausing strikes.
Fewer than 10 commodity vessels passed through the strait on each day of the weekend, the Kpler data showed.
The developments underline how the conflict is spreading beyond the immediate battlefield, with commercial shipping facing heightened risks across key routes linking the Gulf, the Red Sea and global markets.
Bab el-Mandeb traffic hits months-low
Seven of the 11 vessels that passed through Bab el-Mandeb on Sunday were oil tankers. Three of them entered the Red Sea.
Two of those tankers were very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, heading to Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port to load crude. The third was a vessel linked to Russia, according to the data.
Four vessels exited the Red Sea through the strait on Sunday.
Among them was the Hong Kong-flagged VLCC New Explorer, which was carrying around 2 million barrels of Saudi and Emirati crude to Ningbo in eastern China.
Another tanker was carrying approximately 1 million barrels of Russian crude to China, while a third carried about 750,000 barrels of Saudi crude to Pakistan.
The New Explorer was the third Chinese VLCC to exit the Red Sea through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to the shipping data.
Associated Maritime Hong Kong, the manager of the vessel, did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside office hours.
Houthis target Saudi oil facilities
The fall in traffic followed attacks claimed by the Houthis against Saudi oil infrastructure.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said on Saturday that the group had struck sites belonging to Saudi state oil company Aramco in the cities of Jizan and Yanbu.
The attacks mark a significant expansion of the maritime and energy risks linked to the US-Iran conflict.
The Houthis, who are aligned with Tehran, have been disrupting shipping in and around the Red Sea since last week. The group has said it wants to blockade Saudi exports.
The latest attacks raise the possibility that disruption to shipping through Bab el-Mandeb could intensify.
The strait connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and is a critical route for vessels travelling between Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
A prolonged disruption could force more ships to avoid the waterway and take longer routes around Africa. That would increase voyage times, fuel costs and insurance premiums.
Hormuz traffic remains severely depressed
Shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz also remained extremely low over the weekend.
Only seven commodity vessels transited the strait on Sunday, according to Kpler data. Three of them were Iranian-linked oil-products tankers that exited the waterway.
On Saturday, just three vessels passed through the strait, with their transponders switched off, according to the data.
These included a VLCC heading to Qatar to load oil, a liquefied petroleum gas tanker sailing to the UAE’s Ruwais port to load a cargo and a tanker carrying Qatari naphtha to Japan.
Seven vessels passed through the strait on Friday, most of them exiting the Gulf.
They included two VLCCs carrying crude from Iraq and the UAE, as well as a tanker carrying fuel oil.
The low traffic levels highlight the continued caution among shipowners and energy companies despite the pause in US and Iranian strikes.
Why Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb matter
The Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb are among the world’s most important maritime chokepoints.
Hormuz is the main export route for oil and gas from Gulf producers. Any sustained disruption can affect supplies from countries including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq, Qatar and Kuwait.
Bab el-Mandeb, meanwhile, is the gateway between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
It is a key route for trade between Asia and Europe, particularly for vessels using the Suez Canal.
A reduction in traffic through either waterway can have consequences far beyond the region.
Ships avoiding Bab el-Mandeb may have to sail around the Cape of Good Hope, adding thousands of nautical miles to journeys between Asia and Europe.
That means higher fuel consumption, longer delivery times and increased freight costs.
The simultaneous weakness in traffic through both waterways is particularly significant for energy markets.
While some vessels continue to move, the data suggests that commercial shipping companies remain highly cautious about entering areas exposed to military attacks or the risk of further escalation.
Conflict spreads beyond the battlefield
The latest developments show how the conflict has expanded geographically.
The US-Iran confrontation has already disrupted oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Houthi attacks now threaten to create a second major disruption along the Red Sea.
The group has long been a major actor in the region’s maritime security crisis. Its attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea have previously forced several major shipping companies to reroute vessels around Africa.
The latest targeting of Saudi oil infrastructure adds a direct energy dimension to the crisis.
Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s largest oil producers and a key supplier to Asian markets.
Any sustained threat to its export infrastructure, tankers or shipping routes could further complicate global crude supplies.
For now, the shipping data shows a sharp decline in traffic rather than a complete halt.
But the combination of attacks on Saudi energy facilities, reduced traffic through Bab el-Mandeb and continued weakness in Hormuz transits suggests that risks to global energy and trade flows remain elevated.
The key question for markets will be whether the latest disruption remains temporary or develops into a prolonged shipping crisis across the region’s two strategic maritime corridors.
With inputs from agencies.
