Two Chinese oil tankers — the Chinese-flagged Yuan Gui Yang and the Hong Kong-flagged Ocean Lily — have left the Strait of Hormuz after waiting in the Gulf for over two months, carrying about 4 million barrels of crude, according to shipping data from LSEG and Kpler.
Yuan Gui Yang loaded 2 million barrels of Iraqi Basrah crude on February 27, a day before the US-Israel war on Iran started, while Ocean Lily loaded 1 million barrels each of Qatari al-Shaheen and Iraqi Basrah crude between late February and early March.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told a parliamentary hearing in Seoul that a Korean crude vessel was also passing through the Strait on Wednesday.
Their exit came as US President Trump told lawmakers the war on Iran will end “very quickly” and “hopefully … in a very nice manner”. US Vice President JD Vance said at a White House briefing that Tehran-Washington negotiations are “in a pretty good spot here”, with “a lot of good progress” being made.
Trump had earlier threatened military action against Iran again, giving the country “two to three days” to make a deal and claiming he was an hour away from ordering an attack before postponing it. He has repeatedly signaled a deal is close and threatened heavy military action if Iran does not comply.
Oil prices briefly eased on the positive comments, but experts warn prices are likely to remain elevated even if a deal is reached. Brent crude fell to as low as $110.16 a barrel. LSEG analyst Emril Jamil said: “Prices are likely to still exhibit some upside potential even if a deal is concluded, given that supply will likely not return to pre-war levels immediately.”
The economic and political fallout from the US blockade on the Strait of Hormuz has reverberated globally, with Brent hitting its highest since June 2022 last month. The UN cut global growth forecasts to 2.5% this year from 3% last year, citing higher energy costs and weaker trade, warning that low-income families in developing countries bear the heaviest burden.
Source: www.aljazeera.com