French shipping giant CMA CGM on Saturday (7 March) has announced that it will impose a fuel surcharge later in the month in response to a surge in global fuel prices due to ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Near and Middle East.
As a result, bunker costs have significantly increased across all regions and trades, impacting the overall cost of ocean transportation.
“To continue providing reliable and sustainable services in this exceptional context, CMA CGM will implement an Emergency Fuel Surcharge (EFS) as follows,” the company said in an advisory.
The EFS will be effective as from 23 March 2026 (Loading date), or subject to regulatory filings where applicable, and will remain in place until further notice.
On the same date, MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company also announced it will apply an EFS to all cargo from Mediterranean (including West Mediterranean, Adriatic, East Mediterranean, Greece and Turkey) and Black Sea to Indian Sub-Continent, Red Sea and East Africa.
The EFS is scheduled to take effect from 16 March.
Cosco Shipping and Hapag-Lloyd have respectively announced suspension to services in the Middle East.
“In view of the escalating conflicts in the Middle East region and the resultant restrictions on maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, to maximise the safety of your cargo and the stability of overall shipping operations, COSCO Shipping Lines has decided, based on the latest risk assessment results, to suspend all new bookings services for relevant routes with immediate effect until further notice,” the company said on 4 March.
The scope of the suspended service is as follows:
- Suspension of all new bookings from worldwide to the United Arab Emirates (excluding Khor Fakkan and Fujairah), Bahrain, Iraq, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (excluding Jeddah), and Kuwait.
- Suspension of all new bookings from the United Arab Emirates (excluding Khor Fakkan and Fujairah), Qatar, Bahrain, Iraq, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (excluding Jeddah), and Kuwait to worldwide.
On 6 March, Hapag-Lloyd said the current security situation in the Middle East, especially in and around the Upper Gulf, is affecting vessel movements and port operations across the region.
Effective 6 March and until further notice, the company has temporarily suspended its IG1 and KWF services.
On 4 March, the company said it has decided to implement a booking stop with immediate effect and until further notice for all cargo types to and from the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman (Sohar), Saudi Arabia (Dammam and Jubail) and Yemen.
Photo credit: CMA CGM
Published: 9 March, 2026
