Strait of Hormuz transits remained approximately 70% below pre-conflict levels in UKMTO’s latest weekly figures, despite higher inbound and outbound totals than in the previous week. The report recorded combined figures of 122 outbound transits and 155 inbound transits over the previous seven days.
The figures were set out in UKMTO’s Weekly Overview No. 13, produced on 30 October 2026. Its Strait of Hormuz reporting range runs through 28 October 2026. The assessment therefore concerns the period covered by that reporting range, rather than establishing transit levels on the date the overview was produced.
For the previous week, UKMTO reported 114 outbound transits and 127 inbound transits. The latest figures were higher in both directions, with inbound movements continuing to exceed outbound movements. That provides a week-on-week comparison within the report, separate from its assessment of how far activity remained below pre-conflict levels.
Higher weekly totals, but still below the baseline
The two comparisons describe different aspects of the reported activity. Against the previous week, both directional totals increased. Against pre-conflict levels, UKMTO said the combined totals remained approximately 70% lower. The increase between the two reported weeks therefore sits alongside a continuing, substantial shortfall against the baseline used by UKMTO.
The approximately 70% figure applies to the combined totals described in the overview. It should not be presented as a separate percentage reduction for outbound traffic or for inbound traffic. UKMTO supplied a count for each direction, while its pre-conflict comparison was expressed in terms of the combined figures.
The wording also matters: UKMTO described the reduction as approximate. The assessment supports reporting that transits remained about 70% below pre-conflict levels, rather than treating that percentage as an exact measurement. Likewise, higher totals than the previous week do not amount to a return to the pre-conflict level identified in the report.
How the combined figures were compiled
UKMTO described the totals as AIS-derived transits enriched through S&P vessel-entity correlation, plus US NCAGS stated facilitated transits. The figures are therefore presented as a combined measure drawing on those components, not simply as an AIS-derived count. That description is part of the basis on which UKMTO reported the weekly activity.
UKMTO also attached a qualification to the US NCAGS component: it said those stated facilitated transits could not be independently verified in full by UKMTO. This limits the extent to which the combined figures can be described as independently verified by the organisation. The caveat belongs alongside the reported totals and their comparison with pre-conflict levels.
The qualification is specific to the stated facilitated transits. It is not a statement that every transit in the combined figures was unverified. Equally, the inclusion of those transits in UKMTO’s overview should not be taken to mean that UKMTO had independently confirmed all of them. The distinction preserves the report’s stated level of certainty.
Read together, the figures and the methodological qualification support a measured account of the reporting period. UKMTO recorded higher combined transit figures in each direction than in the previous week, but continued to place the overall totals approximately 70% below pre-conflict levels. Its ability to verify the stated facilitated component independently remained qualified.
The central finding is therefore an increase in the reported weekly counts without a return to the pre-conflict baseline. For the range ending on 28 October, UKMTO’s figures remained well below that baseline, even as both inbound and outbound totals rose from the previous week.
