According to ship tracking data, a fleet of ships tried unsuccessfully to leave the Persian Gulf on Friday evening; at the same time, despite Iran's announcement that the Strait of Hormuz has been reopened, shipping companies are still cautiously optimistic about this. Iranian officials said on Friday that during the 10-day cease-fire in the Israel-Lebanon war, this key waterway will be open to all commercial shipping. This move triggered a drop in oil and other commodity prices and boosted the stock market. MarineTraffic data shows that about 20 boats began sailing to the Strait of Hormuz on Friday evening, but soon stopped, and some of them even turned around. This is the largest number of ships that have attempted to pass since Iran essentially blocked the strait after the US-Israel coalition launched an attack on February 28. It is currently unclear why these ships stopped sailing. The fleet includes three container ships operated by the French group Dafei, which declined to comment. As of 5 a.m. Beijing time, most of the boats in this group had returned, but tracking data showed that several new ships were heading towards the strait. The shipping company cautiously welcomed Iran's statement to open the strait, but said it needed further clarification before resuming navigation, especially with regard to safety risks such as the presence of mines. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that all merchant ships can pass through the strait, but the transit plan must be coordinated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran. The official said that ships will be restricted to routes deemed safe by Iran, while warships will still be prohibited from passing.

According to ship tracking data, a fleet of ships tried unsuccessfully to leave the Persian Gulf on Friday evening; at the same time, despite Iran's announcement that the Strait of Hormuz has been reopened, shipping companies are still cautiously optimistic about this. Iranian officials said on Friday that during the 10-day cease-fire in the Israel-Lebanon war, this key waterway will be open to all commercial shipping. This move triggered a drop in oil and other commodity prices and boosted the stock market. MarineTraffic data shows that about 20 boats began sailing to the Strait of Hormuz on Friday evening, but soon stopped, and some of them even turned around. This is the largest number of ships that have attempted to pass since Iran essentially blocked the strait after the US-Israel coalition launched an attack on February 28. It is currently unclear why these ships stopped sailing. The fleet includes three container ships operated by the French group Dafei, which declined to comment. As of 5 a.m. Beijing time, most of the boats in this group had returned, but tracking data showed that several new ships were heading towards the strait. The shipping company cautiously welcomed Iran's statement to open the strait, but said it needed further clarification before resuming navigation, especially with regard to safety risks such as the presence of mines. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that all merchant ships can pass through the strait, but the transit plan must be coordinated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran. The official said that ships will be restricted to routes deemed safe by Iran, while warships will still be prohibited from passing.