{"id":106853,"date":"2026-03-01T06:28:53","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T09:28:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shipping.einnews.com\/article\/896602929"},"modified":"2026-03-01T06:28:53","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T09:28:53","slug":"iran-attacks-prompt-red-sea-rethink-as-box-shipping-exits-strait-of-hormuz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/2026\/03\/01\/iran-attacks-prompt-red-sea-rethink-as-box-shipping-exits-strait-of-hormuz\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran attacks prompt Red Sea rethink as box shipping exits Strait of Hormuz"},"content":{"rendered":"
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LEADING container shipping carriers have halted vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz and rerouted vessels away from the Suez Canal after the US and Israel launched a pre-emptive attack against Iran, plunging the region’s key maritime chokepoints into crisis.<\/p>\n

At least 15 containerships have reversed course from either entering or exiting the Strait of Hormuz, but most have either stopped or have diverted. <\/p>\n

According to Linerlytica co-founder Hua Joo Tan, about 170 containerships with a combined capacity of around 450,000 teu \u2014 roughly 1.4% of the global fleet \u2014 are currently inside the strait and facing restrictions on exiting.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe impact on the broader freight market depends on how long the strait remains shut,\u201d Tan said, adding that the retreat from the Red Sea involves relatively few services and will likely have limited impact, although some ships will need to make U-turns.<\/p>\n

Both Hapag-Lloyd<\/a> and CMA CGM have formally announced suspensions, but others are expected to follow later today.<\/p>\n

CMA CGM<\/a>, the world’s third-largest shipping line, ordered all ships currently in or en route to the Middle East Gulf to \u201ctake shelter\u201d with immediate effect and suspending all Suez transits until further notice.<\/p>\n

As the crisis deepened, Hapag-Lloyd issued a subsequent advisory announcing the suspension of all vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz, citing the waterway\u2019s \u201cofficial closure by relevant authorities amid the evolving security situation\u201d.<\/p>\n

The carrier warned that services calling at Middle East Gulf ports would face delays, rerouting, or schedule adjustments. Although Tehran has not formally declared a blockade of the strait, multiple shipping firms and charterers have independently ordered their vessels to halt passages through the waterway.<\/p>\n

The immediate supply chain impact centres on the Strait of Hormuz. <\/p>\n

There is no viable alternative to getting containers in or out of Middle East Gulf ports such as Dubai\u2019s Jebel Ali<\/a>, which was shut temporarily on Saturday after a fire caused by falling debris from a rocket attack.<\/p>\n

\u201cCarriers will instead omit these calls on east-west services and drop boxes at a least-worst alternative port for onward transportation by road,\u201d said Peter Sand, chief analyst at freight intelligence platform Xeneta. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis will cause severe disruption and port congestion at a regional level but will not have a major impact on a global scale when compared to the seismic influence of conflict in the Red Sea.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rapidly disintegrating security situation is likely to further extend container line rerouting away from the Red Sea.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe repercussions of the joint military operation will see the further weaponisation of trade and shatter hopes of a large-scale return of container shipping to the Red Sea in 2026,\u201d said Sand.<\/p>\n

Carriers had been returning selected east-west services to Suez Canal transits in recent months after sailing around the Cape of Good Hope since late 2023 because of attacks by Iran-backed Houthi militia. Those plans, Sand said, will now be shelved.<\/p>\n

Gemini partners Maersk<\/a> and Hapag-Lloyd <\/a>both issued customer advisories announcing the rerouting of selected services involving Middle East\/India to Mediterranean and US East Coast trades from the Trans-Suez route to the Cape of Good Hope, citing \u201cunforeseen constraints arising from the wider operating environment in the Red Sea region\u201d.<\/p>\n

While that was understood to relate to a lack of naval escort capacity, the prospect of Houthi attacks resuming will now reverse all previous plans to re-enter the Red Sea route.<\/p>\n

Longer sailing distances around the Cape of Good Hope currently absorb around 2.5m teu of global container shipping capacity.<\/p>\n

A large-scale return to the Red Sea would have freed up this capacity, slashed transit times and potentially seen freight rates collapse. With that prospect now off the table, Sand said rates on major global trades will continue to soften but “will not fall as hard as previously expected in the second half of the year.”<\/p>\n

Speculation, nevertheless, has emerged that Chinese-owned vessels may be granted exemptions from the de facto Hormuz blockade by Iranian authorities, mirroring the informal immunity they have largely enjoyed from Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.<\/p>\n

According to Lloyd\u2019s List Intelligence<\/a> vessel-tracking data, a very large crude carrier named New Vision <\/em>(IMO: 9799202<\/a>), owned by China Merchants Group<\/a>, transited the Strait of Hormuz at approximately 0230 hrs local time on March 1 and has since entered the Gulf of Oman. Its previous port of call was Saudi Arabia\u2019s Juaymah Terminal.<\/p>\n

Middle East Gulf ports have reported varying degrees of disruption.<\/p>\n

According to the latest updates from Wilhelmsen, Kuwait\u2019s port of Shuaiba<\/a> has been completely suspended and is evacuating vessels to anchorage to avoid damage from falling debris.<\/p>\n

Bahrain has suspended operations at its Khalifa Bin Salman Port<\/a>, and all port control activities except emergency movements at Sitrah<\/a>, while Qatar\u2019s Ministry of Transport has temporarily suspended all maritime navigation.<\/p>\n

In the UAE, Dubai authorities confirmed that debris from an aerial interception caused a fire at one of the berths at Jebel Ali<\/a>, though the port remains open for vessel calls.<\/p>\n

The strikes, carried out on Saturday and following a 12-day air war between Israel and Iran in June, have been confirmed to have killed Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. <\/p>\n

Tehran has vowed an escalated retaliation, raising the spectre of a broader regional conflict and sending shockwaves through global shipping markets.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Houthi forces in Yemen have reportedly decided to resume attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. Citing Houthi officials, the Associated Press reported that the first strike could come imminently, though the group’s leadership has not yet issued a formal announcement.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/strong> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

… impact on the broader freight<\/span> market depends on how … Sand, chief analyst at freight<\/span> intelligence platform Xeneta. \u00e2\u0080\u009cThis … times and potentially seen freight<\/span> rates collapse. With that … sending shockwaves through global shipping<\/span> markets. Meanwhile,\u00c2\u00a0Houthi forces …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-106853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106853"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106853\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}