Hormuz Drops to Four Ships as Iran Hits US Bases in Kuwait and Bahrain

Four commodity ships transited the Strait of Hormuz on September 1. That was down from ten on Monday, according to OilPrice shipping data, and a fraction of the thirteen that normally cross in a day. Iran launched missile and drone attacks on US military installations in Kuwait and Bahrain the following morning.

Bahrain's Sheikh Isa Air Base was among the targets. Kuwait's air defenses intercepted part of the wave. Iranian forces also struck US positions in Jordan and Iraq's Kurdistan region, according to Gulf News.

Saudi Arabia's shipping company Bahri confirmed on September 2 that two Filipino crew members died in Monday's attack on the tanker Sidr. Bahri had not publicly named a second ship struck in the same incident. President Trump said the United States holds "almost total control" of the strait.

Shipping through the lane had barely started to recover before the latest strikes. In late August, Kpler data showed ten transits through the strait in a single day, still below the pre-crisis level. That partial rebound followed US strikes on two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island on August 30, the first confirmed US military action against Iranian assets inside the strait. The lane has been under pressure since late February.