Major shipping companies are adopting new methods to bypass restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to the Financial Times, firms are turning to alternative cargo routes for fuel transport.
Giants like Mediterranean Shipping Company, Maersk, CMA CGM, and Hapag-Lloyd have created new routes from Red Sea and Gulf of Oman ports—including Yanbu, King Abdullah, and Fujairah—to Dammam, Basra, and Jebel Ali.
This avoids entering the partially blocked Strait of Hormuz.
Shipping costs from Shanghai to the Persian Gulf and Red Sea have hit record levels. Clarksons Research reports a standard container price rise from $980 to $4,131 by May 15.
Business Times notes that the Strait of Hormuz will remain a key transit route for oil and gas. Reducing dependence is possible but requires huge investment, and new pipelines cannot fully replace maritime transit.
