Tuesday, October 20, 2026
The news that moves freight
The Freight Brief Oct 10, 2026

What’s going on in freight — Saturday 10 October 2026

28 stories from roughly 5–10 October. The big themes: the Gulf war is getting worse, US-bound ocean rates have turned down after peaking, inland and fuel costs are still climbing, and 2027 contract season is starting with carriers flush with cash. Each bullet has its own document (number in brackets) with 100-, 300- and 1,500-word drafts.

War, chokepoints and disruption

  • Hormuz attacks hit their highest weekly count of the war. There were 12 attacks on ships between 28 September and 7 October, and strikes now reach off Qatar and the UAE. Maersk still charges $1,000 per box to cross Hormuz on top of emergency freight of up to $3,800. USNI News · gCaptain/Reuters · Maersk (01)
  • Houthi strikes on Saudi airports cut Riyadh’s outbound air cargo capacity by 34% in 24 hours. Lufthansa and Air India suspended flights, and fighting for Yemen’s Bab el-Mandeb coast goes on. The Loadstar · gCaptain/Bloomberg (06)
  • The Black Sea war has reached Romanian and Bulgarian waters. Drones sank two ships there on 5–6 October, and September wheat loadings fell 78% to the lowest since 2017. Splash247 · Euronews (09)
  • Hurricane Isaias closed Mobile, Pascagoula, Gulfport, Pensacola and Panama City to shipping. It came ashore near Destin as a Category 2, and Mobile has no reopening date yet. Supply Chain Dive · Waterways Journal (08)
  • The Panama Canal came through a magnitude 7.7 quake on 9 October with no lock damage. It goes to 33 daily transit slots from 15 October, still below the 36 a day before September’s cuts. Splash247 · Panama Canal Authority (10)
  • Manila brokers and truckers stopped work over a glut of empty containers. Hapag-Lloyd has suspended Manila, Batangas and Subic Bay bookings through 31 December. The Loadstar · Philstar (11)
  • German port strikes are off after ver.di accepted a 3.4% deal, though employers still have to approve it. The Rhine at Kaub is in single digits of centimetres, and barge waits at Rotterdam average 56 hours. The Loadstar (12)
  • A fire on the HMM Platinum (about 2,300 boxes, India to Brazil) has the ship heading for a South African port of refuge. General average, where every cargo owner shares the cost of saving the voyage, is “considered likely”. Splash247 (13)

Rates and markets

  • US-bound container rates have peaked. Drewry’s Shanghai–LA rate fell 3% to $7,624 per 40ft. Xeneta forecasts $6,000–7,000 to the US East Coast within three months, and the NRF says US imports are “likely past” their busiest point. FreightWaves · DCN · FreightWaves (02)
  • Carriers have filed late-October Asia–Europe rate increases. MSC has filed $4,500 per 40ft and CMA CGM $4,700–4,900 to the Med. Spot is near $3,300 after 13 straight weekly falls, and the Suez return is freeing ships. The Loadstar · The Loadstar (03)
  • Intra-Asia rates slipped 1% to $1,503 per 40ft after six weekly gains. The index is still up 209% on last year, and Shanghai–Jebel Ali sits at $8,662. The Loadstar (04)
  • Air cargo enters Q4 about 25% dearer than a year ago. China–North America dipped 18% in a week over Golden Week, and Xeneta says fixed one-year air deals are becoming the exception. TAC Index · Freightos · Air Cargo News (05)
  • Inland costs are climbing. DAT’s US van spot rate hit $3.13 a mile and US diesel is more than 70% above a year ago. Trump deferred the federal diesel tax to year-end, and Maersk sets a 20% UK and Ireland inland fuel surcharge from 12 October. TheTrucker.com · Federal Register · Marine Insight (07)

Tariffs, customs and policy

  • The US trade court certified a class so importers that never sued can claim IEEPA tariff refunds. Separately, CBP’s CAPE Phase 3 started paying litigants on closed entries on 6 October. Supply Chain Dive · Supply Chain Dive (14)
  • CBP proposed rebuilding low-value entry. Shipments of $2,500 or less would be filed by arrival day, with a new mail entry type and bonds for both; comments are due 7 December. Federal Register (15)
  • 18 October is the deadline under the Graham Act for duties of up to 100% on the biggest buyers of Russian oil, with China and India at the top of the likely list. National Law Review · APA (16)
  • US port fees on Chinese ships restart on 9 November unless USTR files a notice. Washington says the wider truce runs to 10 January, but no notice had been published as of 10 October. Seatrade Maritime · gCaptain (17)
  • Eight Adani-run Indian airports, including both Mumbai airports, stopped handling Russia-bound cargo, leaving about 150 tonnes stranded. Separately, carriers dropped India–Novorossiysk bookings. The Loadstar (18)
  • Demurrage and detention fights are getting expensive. Samsung wants $186m from CMA CGM at the FMC, and the FMC warned Cosco of up to $16.7m in penalties for paying a $24,328 award late. FreightWaves · The Loadstar (23)

Forwarders, carriers and deals

  • C.H. Robinson agreed to buy RXO for $5.8bn, pitching AI-driven savings of $300m a year. C.H. Robinson’s shares fell 10.85% on the day. C.H. Robinson · FreightWaves (19)
  • Carrier Q3 results are starting strong. OOCL’s revenue rose 45% and its trans-Pacific revenue 72%, and Zim raised its 2026 profit outlook midpoint by 72%. Container News · FreightWaves (20)
  • Israel sent Hapag-Lloyd’s $4.2bn Zim takeover back for a fresh review. Zim shares sit about 17% below the $35 offer. FreightWaves (21)
  • CMA CGM closed its $1.4bn FedEx Supply Chain purchase and reorganised CEVA into two global units: freight management and contract logistics. CMA CGM · AJOT (22)
  • Amazon added two China–US air services for its sellers, including one with no FBA inbound placement fee. Supply Chain Dive (24)

Software, AI and automation

  • WiseTech plans to charge for CargoWise AI agents outside the Value Pack price, according to a Citi note reported by The Loadstar. The Loadstar (25)
  • Customers’ AI assistants can now book freight directly. Freight Right followed Flexport on 7 October, and the open question is who pays for a wrong booking. Splash247 · FreightWaves · The Loadstar (26)
  • Freightmate acknowledged using about 2,000 confidential Flexport shipping documents as their trade-secrets case settled 11 days before trial. The Loadstar (27)
  • Driverless trucks got a five-year federal exemption from the US trucking regulator (FMCSA), and Kodiak started hauls on the Dallas–Laredo lane, still with a safety driver aboard. Automotive World · GlobeNewswire (28)

Coming up

  • 13 Oct: closed CIT conference on the IEEPA refund class
  • 15 Oct: Panama Canal goes to 33 daily slots; J.B. Hunt reports Q3
  • 18 Oct: Graham Act deadline
  • 19 Oct: MSC’s Asia–North Europe rate increase takes effect
  • 21 Oct: DSV reports Q3
  • 28 Oct: C.H. Robinson reports Q3
  • 9 Nov: the Chinese ship-fee suspension lapses unless extended
  • 7 Dec: comments due on CBP’s low-value rule