Hormuz attacks spread to container ships: one feeder sunk, Gulf bookings frozen, transit surcharges up to $1,000

The details

The attack wave. Maritime authorities reported at least 10 vessels attacked in or near the chokepoint since Sunday, Oct. 11, with six incidents on that Sunday alone — the highest one-day total since the U.S.-Iran war began in February, American Shipper reported. At least four of the targets were container ships:

• The Singapore-flagged feeder GFS Pride (2,824 TEU) was hit by an unknown projectile on Tuesday while transiting, caught fire and sank off Oman with containers still aboard. Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority said all 21 crew were evacuated safely.
• A second Singapore-flagged box ship, GFS Giselle, took projectile hits and hull damage but reached anchorage under its own power with 22 crew reported safe.
• The 2,500-TEU DP World Kaveri, operated by a unit of Dubai’s DP World, was also struck, along with a fourth feeder not publicly identified.

Per UKMTO, 12 vessels reported attacks in the week of Oct. 5–11, the largest weekly total of the war, after 10 the week before. According to IMO casualty data, GFS Pride and the bulk carrier Cape Dao — which sank after being struck on Sept. 23 — are the second and third vessels lost since the conflict began.

Traffic is contracting. Kpler counted 131 crossings through the strait in the week ended Oct. 14, down from 176 the previous week, and estimated 12.6 million barrels a day of crude moved through it on Oct. 13, versus roughly 15 million at the end of September. Iran links the intensified campaign to the U.S. blockade of its ports and tougher sanctions; CENTCOM maintains traffic continues with coordinated protection.

What carriers are doing. Maersk’s Middle East operational update, last revised Oct. 2, suspends bookings to and from Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, the Saudi ports of Dammam, Al Jubail and King Abdullah, and cross-border cargo via Jordan; UAE moves are accepted only to Khor Fakkan and Jebel Ali by landbridge. Gulf cargo routes through Salalah, Sohar, Khor Fakkan, Jeddah and Aqaba, with an emergency rate of $3,800 for Jeddah bookings for local consignees and a $1,000-per-container fee for any strait transit, as summarized by ContainerSignal. No carrier has restored normal Gulf calls. Iran’s foreign minister said on Oct. 18 that a proposal to reopen the strait within seven days remains on the table.

What buyers should do

• Reprice Gulf-destination and -origin freight now. Get the transit fee, emergency rates and landbridge legs in writing from your carrier or forwarder; ask which lanes they include and their expiry.
• Assume longer lead times into Saudi Arabia and neighbors. Delivery now runs through Salalah, Sohar, Jeddah or Aqaba with overland segments; build the extra days into plans and reset customer promises.
• Check your billings. Audit this month’s ocean invoices against contract: blanked sailings and reroutes produce rolled cargo and spot repricing that can leak through.
• Diversify sourcing away from single Gulf plants where inventory buffers are thin, and confirm war-risk coverage on cargo moving through the region.

The bigger picture

This compounds a market already straining: schedule reliability collapsed to 27% and transpacific rates split from falling Asia-Europe lanes earlier this month, while Gulf air capacity tightened after strikes closed Riyadh airspace (our air-cargo report). The energy-price echo matters too: fewer barrels through the strait keeps diesel and jet fuel elevated, feeding fuel surcharges across every mode. A seven-day reopening offer is diplomacy, not a booking confirmation — buyers should plan for disrupted Gulf service into 2027 unless a deal is actually implemented.