International Fertilizer and Agriculture News - August 25

Weekend Shipping Flows Through the Strait of Hormuz Diverge, With No Near-Term Sign of an Agreement

Vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz was mixed over the weekend, rising on Saturday and falling on Sunday, while Iran and the United States appeared to be moving further away from a diplomatic solution to reopen the waterway. According to maritime security company Windward, 34 vessels transited the waterway on August 22, while transits fell to 16 on August 23.

Vessel information company TankerTrackers.com said today that nearly 6 million barrels of crude were exported from the Middle East to global markets through the US naval blockade line over the past seven days, approximately one-third of the pre-war average of 19 million barrels in February 2026. The US blockade of Iranian ports is enforced outside the Strait of Hormuz, between the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.

Iran is seeking to further strengthen its control over the Strait. The Persian Gulf Strait Administration announced on Monday stricter transit rules for vessels passing through the narrow waterway. Bilateral Iran-Oman negotiations on traffic through the Strait are due to resume this week, and an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad al-Busaidi plans to visit Tehran on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the United States announced a new “Operation Economic Pariah” aimed at economically isolating Iran, after Iran unsuccessfully sought to use military force to restore commercial vessel traffic to pre-war levels. US officials have claimed for weeks that large volumes of energy are flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, despite a lack of evidence supporting those figures.

Weekend Tanker Traffic: According to Windward, traffic on August 22 reached its highest level in more than a month, with 34 transits across the US-assisted southern channel and the Iranian-controlled northern channel, comprising 20 inbound and 14 outbound transits. According to Argus, this may have been the highest recorded flow since July 7, when 36 vessels transited the Strait. A total of 11 tankers passed through the Strait that day. Windward data showed four outbound tanker transits, comprising three via the northern route and one via the southern route.

Notable inbound transits via the southern channel included the very large crude carrier Grit, which Kpler data indicate is expected to load 2 million barrels of crude at Dubai's light crude loading area. Kpler data show that LPG carriers Delmar and Varich are each scheduled to load approximately 500,000 barrels of fuel at Adnoc's Ruwais refinery, while tanker Alfonso is scheduled to load around 250,000 barrels of fuel in Iraq. According to Kpler, outbound transits included three tankers using the northern channel that are expected to load in Iran, as well as one ballast asphalt tanker.

According to Windward, Strait of Hormuz transits fell to 16 on August 23, comprising six inbound and 10 outbound transits, mainly through the southern channel. Windward data showed three inbound tanker transits through the southern channel and one through the northern channel. Inbound vessels included the LPG carriers Maracaja Gas and Olympios Gas, scheduled to load approximately 500,000 barrels and 300,000 barrels of LPG, respectively, at Qatar's Ras Laffan refinery, as well as the medium-range product tanker Empire.

Brazil and the United States to Hold Tariff Talks Following Lula-Trump Call

Brazilian and US representatives will meet this week to discuss US tariffs imposed on Brazilian imports in July, following a phone call between the two countries' presidents last week. According to Brazilian officials, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer contacted the Brazilian government shortly after President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Donald Trump spoke last week. Lula told Trump at that time that the United States' 25% tariffs on Brazilian products were “unfounded.”

Brazilian Trade Minister Marcio Rosa and representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will meet with the Office of the US Trade Representative this week, although a specific date has not been announced.

The Office of the US Trade Representative imposed the tariffs following a year-long Section 301 investigation into alleged unfair trade practices by Brazil. One reason for the investigation was restricted access to Brazil's ethanol market. Other factors included concerns regarding organized crime, corruption, deforestation, and unfair competition from Brazil's Pix digital payment system. While many products, such as pig iron, iron ore, rare-earth metals, crude oil, coffee and beef, are exempt from tariffs, products including ethanol, sugar and tallow are not exempt.