Japan-Bound Tankers from U.S. Increase amid Hormuz Closure

Tokyo, April 28 (Jiji Press)--The number of crude oil tankers sailing to Japan from the United States has shot up amid the effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil transport waterway.

As of Thursday, 13 tankers bound for Japan were confirmed to have departed from coastal U.S. areas of the Gulf of Mexico, a key oil loading hub.

One of the ships arrived in Japan via the Panama Canal, and the remaining vessels, including those passing by the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa, are set to begin arriving next month.

The Japanese government considers North America an alternative crude oil supplier other than the Middle East, where fighting between U.S.-Israeli forces and Iran has led to the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The number of tankers quadrupled from three about a month ago, according to Yutaro Nishi, global analyst at Rakuten Securities Economic Research Institute, who analyzed data from global ship-tracking website MarineTraffic.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]