Strait of Hormuz still seeing significantly lower traffic despite ceasefire

Only about a dozen ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz in the first two days of the ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran, far below the normal traffic level before the war, marine transit data shows.

As part of the agreement, which President Trump announced late Tuesday, Iran would allow vessels to cross through the channel, which is a crucial waterway for shipping about 20% of the world's oil supply. 

On Wednesday and Thursday, at least 12 ships passed through the waterway, data from ship tracking company, Marine Traffic, shows. But that's just a fraction of the 129 vessels that transited the strait on an average day from Feb. 1 to Feb. 27, according to data from the U.N.'s Trade and Development organization.

Only three of the ships that passed through since the ceasefire began were oil or chemical tankers, all passing on Thursday. All three are under U.S. sanctions for previously shipping Iranian oil. The rest were cargo ships.