IEA monitoring Middle East events, potential oil, gas market impacts: Birol

The International Energy Agency is monitoring events in the Middle East and their potential implications for oil and gas markets, Executive Director Fatih Birol said March 1, following missile attacks and traffic suspensions at the Strait of Hormuz.

"Markets have been well supplied to date," Birol said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. "I am in contact with Ministers from major producers in the region & IEA governments about the situation."

Birol's comments came as oil tanker traffic transiting the main shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz was halted on March 1, according to tracking data reviewed by Platts, part of S&P Global Energy.

There were no crude or product tankers seen arriving to transit the main Hormuz traffic separation scheme (TSS) channels that run east–west through the narrowest part of the strait between southern Iran and the UAE/Oman coast, according to data from S&P Global Commodities at Sea.

Japan's NYK Line and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, among the world's largest ship operators, have halted all of its ships from transiting the Strait of Hormuz amid heightened safety concerns following missile attacks, NYK and MOL spokespeople told Platts on March 1.

The Strait of Hormuz is a vital chokepoint through which about 20% of the world's oil and LNG supply transits daily.