Shipping giants freeze container traffic amid rising Gulf threats

Container shipping giants Hapag-Lloyd and A.P. Moller-Maersk have halted bookings and begun diverting vessels away from the Middle East amid escalating security risks in the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global trade routes.

The moves by the two European carriers – among the world’s biggest container lines –  come as the threat of missile and drone attacks has forced shipping companies to reroute cargo or suspend transits through the narrow Gulf waterway, The Wall Street Journal reports.

More than 3,000 vessels have been stuck in Gulf ports or waiting outside the strait as insurers withdraw war-risk coverage and shipowners hesitate to send crews into what has effectively become a combat zone.

At the same time, oil shipping has begun to stall as dozens of supertankers either idle inside the Persian Gulf or slow their voyages while owners assess whether it is safe to attempt the passage, Bloomberg reports.

The disruption in the corridor that normally carries roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supplies has sent tanker charter rates soaring and raised fears of prolonged shocks to global supply chains.