Shipping Giants Abandon Middle East Routes as War Reaches Global Trade Lanes

The world’s major shipping companies are abandoning two of the most important trade routes on the planet, as the escalating military conflict in the Middle East renders commercial shipping in the region too dangerous and too expensive to insure. The decision by Maersk and other carriers to suspend transits through the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal marks a dramatic escalation of the conflict’s impact on the global economy, threatening to disrupt supply chains far beyond the energy sector.
Maersk, one of the world’s largest container shipping companies, announced on Sunday that it was halting all transits through the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal. The company cited safety concerns following attacks on commercial vessels in the strait and the broader deterioration of the security environment in the region. Other shipping companies are expected to follow suit, reducing the volume of commercial traffic through both waterways to a fraction of its normal level.
The consequences for global supply chains extend well beyond energy commodities. The Suez Canal and the Strait of Hormuz together facilitate the movement of an enormous volume of manufactured goods, raw materials, food, and consumer products. When these routes are disrupted, shipping companies must either divert vessels on much longer alternative routes or suspend services entirely. Both options add significant cost and delay to global supply chains.
For energy markets, the impact is particularly acute. The Strait of Hormuz is the primary exit route for Middle Eastern oil and LNG, and its closure is already driving sharp rises in energy prices globally. Gas prices surged more than 40% on Monday, and oil prices hit 14-month highs. The additional disruption to the Suez Canal, which carries LNG shipments from the Atlantic basin to Asian markets, compounds the supply challenges facing global energy buyers.
The International Maritime Organization called for maximum caution from all shipping companies operating in the affected region. The organization’s secretary general expressed deep concern about the safety of seafarers caught in the conflict zone, noting that several had already been wounded in attacks. For the global trading system, the suspension of commercial shipping through the world’s two most critical maritime chokepoints represents a crisis that will take time and significant diplomatic effort to resolve.