Freight costs spike again
Shipping risk premiums and insurance costs have jumped sharply after recent Middle East attacks and Strait of Hormuz disruptions — risk premiums up ~300% since January and bunker prices up ~160% year-to-date, forcing lines to reroute and drop containers at alternative ports. The result: longer lead times, container pile‑ups, and higher landed costs for Caribbean importers as carriers shift schedules and ports absorb overflow. (seatrade-maritime.com; bloomberg.com)
Lloyd’s underwriters and major reinsurers began cancelling Gulf war‑risk cover in early March, with brokers reporting quoted Strait‑of‑Hormuz transit premiums that pushed a very large crude carrier (VLCC) transit from roughly $100,000 to more than $400,000. (themiddleeastinsider.com) Singapore and Fujairah bunkering hubs are trading spot fuel grades in the roughly $140–$175 per barrel range, and marine gasoil/very‑low‑sulphur fuel prices spiked sharply after late‑February strikes, tightening refuelling availability. (blockonomi.com) Container lines MSC, Maersk, CMA CGM, COSCO and Hapag‑Lloyd have rerouted or omitted Gulf/Suez calls, and Lloyd’s List intelligence estimated about 170 containerships totalling roughly 450,000 TEU were effectively trapped or delayed in the Hormuz area during the spike. (kpler.com) Maersk announced service suspensions for some Trans‑Suez strings and a global Emergency Bunker Surcharge to take effect 25 March 2026, citing fuel disruption and network stability as the cause. (maersk.com) Diversions around the Cape of Good Hope are adding roughly 10–15 days to many Asia‑Europe voyages (other estimates put some routings at 14–25 extra days) and analysts say the longer sailings have absorbed the equivalent of millions of TEU of effective capacity, reducing schedule reliability. (gocubic.io) Caribbean‑focused operators have already reacted: Seaboard Marine published a general rate increase for U.S.–Caribbean sailings effective 8 March 2026, while regional hubs DP World Caucedo and Kingston Freeport show rising berth activity and Kingston’s terminals reported handling 56,085 TEU of imports in February. (seaboardmarine.com) Port authorities and terminals across the region are extending operating hours and prioritising mainliner calls, which has left stripped or overflow boxes in storage yards and driven longer container dwell times and higher landed costs for importers. (caribbeancargodc.com)
