Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz slowed to a halt over the weekend ahead of the expiry date of the 60-day ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran on Monday, with no official negotiations or deal in sight. Over the weekend, only five cargo ships passed through the critical oil passage on Saturday, according to data from Kpler cited by Reuters , while no ships were registered to pass through the passage on Sunday. This is compared with 31 vessels the previous weekend. Shipping traffic had already hit a three-month low last week, with a five-day average of 13 vessel transits on Tuesday reflecting the lowest level since May 12, a CNBC analysis of Kpler data found . Overall, shipping is down 90% since before the war started on February 28, with the Strait of Hormuz carrying about a fifth of the world's oil, averaging about 130 vessel transits per day. HSBC shipping expert Parash Jain told CNBC's Squawk Box Europe Monday morning that investors should understand "chaos is the norm" for the industry and factor it into their base assumptions. Oil prices inched lower on Monday with international benchmark Brent crude futures down 0.15% to $88.45 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude declined 0.74% to $81.79. Talks and negotiations between the U.S. and Iran have stalled as a fragile ceasefire between the two countries is due to expire on Monday. Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said the two sides do "not have anything like a ceasefire," per quotes from Iranian news outlet Shahrara News on Saturday. "No negotiations have been held between the United States and us at this time...Qatar and Pakistan are exchanging messages between the parties and are in contact with us, but this does not mean negotiations," Araghchi said, according to the quotes. U.S. President Donald Trump claimed last week that "pretty soon I'll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States ." However, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi insisted in a post on X on Friday that the Strait will remain "Iranian" and only be closed and opened "under Iran's command."
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