Cargo News

Insurance broker Marsh McLennan said on Wednesday it had met with U.S. officials to explore solutions for restoring maritime trade amid escalating fighting in the Middle East, as attacks in the region threaten energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.The waterway, a critical chokepoint between Iran and Oman, carries about a fifth of globally traded crude oil and liquefied natural gas.Shipping through the strait has slowed significantly following Iranian strikes on commercial vessels…

Exxon Mobil is set to ship around 600,000 barrels of fuel from the U.S. Gulf Coast to cover its own import requirements in Australia, the first such shipments by the oil major, four sources with knowledge of the matter said.The planned shipments, on a route rarely used for refined products flows, show how severely global oil trade has been impacted by the near-complete halt of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz after Iran began striking vessels in the waterway this week in retaliation for U.S.

"The attacks on Iran by the US and Israel have caused disruptions for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Although this passage is less critical for the dry bulk sector than for the tanker market, the disruptions still impact around 4% of dry bulk cargo volumes and tonne mile demand,” says Filipe Gouveia, Shipping Analysis Manager at BIMCO.Disruptions in the region have already led to a decline in traffic, and at least five ships have been attacked. The number of bulk carrier…

MSC, the world's largest carrier of ocean container cargo, said on Tuesday all cargo bound for ports in the Gulf will be offloaded at the nearest safe seaport due to ongoing hostilities in the Middle East following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran.The move, known as an "End of Voyage" declaration, also applies to empty containers that have been released for loading with cargo and are intended for export to the ports in the Gulf, Geneva-based MSC said in a customer advisory.A mandatory surcharge of $800 per container will apply to all affected shipments…

Saudi Arabia's state oil company Aramco is attempting to reroute some of its crude exports to the Red Sea to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, where the risk of Iranian attacks has slowed shipping to a near halt, sources said on Tuesday.Saudi Arabia and other regional Gulf oil producers, such as the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq, have been unable to move oil through the Strait since the U.S. and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Friday. Hundreds of ships have anchored on either side of the Strait as a precaution…

Container ships account for roughly 100 of the 750 ships ensnared in the Strait of Hormuz backups following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran, Jeremy Nixon, CEO of container carrier Ocean Network Express (ONE), said on Monday."About 10% of the container ship global fleet is caught up in this," Nixon said at S&P Global Market Intelligence’s TPM26 container shipping conference in Long Beach.Maritime insurers ceased covering voyages through the strait between Iran and Oman, which carries around one-fifth of oil consumed globally as well as large quantities of gas, as Iran retaliated against U.S.

World sugar prices headed higher on Monday on fears the U.S.-Israel war against Iran, which is disrupting global energy supplies, will prompt Brazilian cane mills to produce more ethanol and less sugar.Ethanol is a cane-based biofuel.

Insurance companies are cancelling war risk coverage for vessels in the Gulf as the widening Iran conflict disrupted shipping, leaving at least four tankers damaged, two seafarers killed and 150 ships stranded around the Strait of Hormuz.Shipping through the strait between Iran and Oman, which carries around one-fifth of oil consumed globally as well as large quantities of gas, has ground to a near halt after vessels in the area were hit as Iran retaliated to U.S. and Israeli strikes.The disruption and fears of prolonged closure have caused oil and European natural gas prices to jump…

OPEC+ has decided to increase its crude oil production target by 206,000 barrels per day (bpd) for April against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical risk as conflict in the Middle East escalated rapidly over the weekend.Oil markets will enter the new week facing a materially higher risk of supply disruption, as approximately 15 million bpd of crude oil transits the Strait of Hormuz, representing close to 30% of global seaborne crude trade.This makes it the world's most critical oil chokepoint.Any sustained disruption…

Shipping companies Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd and CMA CGM are rerouting vessels around Africa, away from the Suez Canal and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz."Due to the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East region following the escalating military conflict, we have decided...to pause future Trans-Suez sailings through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait for the time being," Danish container shipping group Maersk said in a statement on Sunday.The company last month announced a gradual return of some services to the Suez route…

At least three tankers were damaged off the Gulf coast and one seafarer was killed as Iranian retaliation for U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran exposed ships to collateral damage, shipping sources and officials said on Sunday.Risks to commercial shipping have surged in the past 24 hours, with more than 200 vessels including oil and liquefied gas tankers dropping anchor around the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters, shipping data showed on Sunday.Iran has said it has closed navigation through the critical waterway…

U.S. diesel exports to Europe hit an all‑time high in January after the continent strengthened its ban on imports of Russian-derived fuel, and as discounted Russian diesel displaced U.S. fuel in Brazil, data showed and analysts said.The developments show how Western sanctions, aimed at punishing Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, are reshaping markets, allowing U.S. producers to capture premium markets in Europe while forcing Russia to seek customers much farther from home.Notably…

Iron ore shipments on the Great Lakes totaled 2 million tons in January, a near match to 2025. Loadings were below the month’s 5-year average by 14.5 percent.Since 1880, Lake Carriers’ has represented the U.S.-flag Great Lakes fleet, which today can move more than 90 million tons of cargos annually that are the foundation of American industry, infrastructure, and power: iron ore, stone, coal, cement, and other dry bulk materials such as grain, salt, and sand.

Marcura has acquired Shipdem, a UK-based specialist in chemical tanker laytime and demurrage, from its parent company, Casper Shipping. Shipdem brings expertise in chemical tanker demurrage, where operational complexity and contractual nuance demand technical knowledge and disciplined claims handling process. The acquisition follows HubSE in 2025 and continues Marcura’s investment in claims management capabilities across all major cargo types. HubSE’s self-service technology for tanker demurrage complements Shipdem’s fully managed service capability…

Exports from the Port of Los Angeles, the busiest U.S. gateway for ocean trade, fell 8% in January to the lowest monthly output in nearly three years, Executive Director Gene Seroka said on Tuesday."Exports to China look dismal," Seroka said after the Port of Los Angeles handled 104,297 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of loaded export containers in January.President Trump's aggressive use of tariffs has upended global trade and retaliatory trade duties from China and other nations have hit U.S.

In a move that further reshapes the global liner landscape, Hapag-Lloyd has agreed to acquire ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $4.2 billion, the companies announced today.Under the terms of the merger agreement, Hapag-Lloyd will acquire ZIM for $35.00 per share in cash, representing a 58% premium to ZIM’s prior-day closing stock price, a 90% premium to its 90-day VWAP, and a 126% premium to its unaffected share price of $15.50 in August 2025 prior to market speculation.The transaction…

Russian wheat export prices rose last week as weather conditions continued to seriously hamper shipments from the country's southern ports, analysts said.The price of Russian wheat with 12.5% protein content for free-on-board (FOB) delivery in the second half of March was $233.0 a metric ton at the end of last week, up $2 compared to the previous week, said Dmitry Rylko, head of the IKAR consultancy.Weather conditions significantly limited shipments from Russia's southern ports in January.

India's on Friday allowed the export of 2.5 million metric tons of wheat and an additional 500,000 tons each of wheat products and sugar, as the world's second-biggest producer of both commodities seeks to support local growers amid protests over a trade deal between New Delhi and Washington.On Thursday, thousands of farmers staged demonstrations, alleging the government had compromised their interests under the interim U.S.-India trade framework, though the trade minister said safeguards were in place.Announcing the decision in a statement, the federal government said the aim was to stabilise

Spain’s Valenciaport closed the 2025 financial year with higher revenues, sharply improved profitability, and a new record for container throughput, underscoring continued carrier commitment despite a volatile global trade backdrop.Provisional results reviewed by the board of directors show net turnover rising 9.02% year over year to €164.3 million, while pre-tax profit climbed 50.51% to €43.7 million. Container volumes reached 5.66 million TEU, up 3.41% from 2024 and the highest annual total in the port authority’s history.Presenting the figures at the board’s first meeting of 2026…

Following the shipping company Brittany Ferries’ refusal to stop transporting unweaned calves from Ireland to France, NGOs including Compassion in World Farming, FOUR PAWS, Welfarm, and Ethical Farming Ireland are planning a media “storm” to make people aware of the animal welfare issues.For over a year, Brittany Ferries has been carrying tens of thousands of unweaned calves on its ships. By the time the ships reach France, the calves have gone for over 18 hours without food.This month marks the start of peak calf export season.

The 34-year-old livestock carrier ship Blue Ocean A, flying the flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis, has been detained at the Italian Port of Cagliari after a port state control inspection found 54 irregularities, 30 of which were considered serious.The vessel nearly ran aground on January 29 off San Pietro Island due to a main engine failure while carrying 33 crew members.The inspection revealed problems with firefighting and life-saving equipment, bridge systems, crew emergency training…

Oslo-listed dry bulk operator Western Bulk reported a marked earnings recovery in the second half of 2025, capitalizing on a broad-based rebound in freight markets and tighter effective vessel supply.According to the company’s Second Half Year Report 2025, Western Bulk generated a net profit after tax of USD 7.4 million in 2H 2025, compared with a net loss of USD 5.2 million in the same period a year earlier. For the full year, the group posted a net profit of USD 5.4 million…

McQuilling Services has released its 29th anniversary edition, 2026-2030 Tanker Market Outlook with the theme: “You Can’t See the Forest for the Trees.”The report frames the outlook for crude tankers over the next five years. Structural forces (the “forest”) including: 1) macroeconomic conditions, 2) a weakening US dollar, 3) a commodity price super cycle, 4) emerging market oil demand, and 5) global shipyard capacity constraints are expected to dominate market direction. Geopolitical…