[Data shows Middle East oil shipments are close to pre-war levels] October 21, a report from data provider Kpler showed that crude oil and condensate outflows from the Persian Gulf reached a high of 24.6 million barrels per day in the week ending October 18. However, transportation volume has fluctuated greatly, and the daily average level since October is still lower than before the war. Loading is often done intensively, with ships forming a fleet to cross the Strait of Hormuz, transferring cargo to tankers waiting outside the strait, and then returning to reload. Data from another data firm, Vortexa, did not show the same weekly surge, underscoring the difficulty of determining export levels now that most tankers have turned off their positioning signals. Vortexa estimated shipping volumes at 18 million barrels per day during the same period. Both companies estimate pre-conflict shipping volumes at at least 18.5 million barrels per day.