Tuesday, October 20, 2026
The news that moves freight
The Freight Brief Oct 12, 2026

What’s going on in freight — Monday 12 October 2026

War is setting the agenda: tanker attacks have spread to the UAE and Omani anchorages that let cargo avoid Hormuz, Black Sea war cover has jumped, and carriers are drifting back to Suez despite a worsening Houthi–Saudi conflict. Ocean spot rates keep sliding after Golden Week while air cargo heads into peak 25% dearer than last year, with fuel costs still to pass through.

War, chokepoints and disruption

  • A drone hit the tanker Petro Dolphin at Sohar anchorage in Oman on 11 October, leaving two Indian seafarers missing, two days after a 302,000-tonne tanker was hit off Sharjah. The anchorages that let freight dodge Hormuz are now targets. Marine Insight, Splash247 (01)
  • Asia–Europe carriers keep moving services back through Suez even after a CU Lines ship was reportedly fired on in the southern Red Sea. Drewry puts the saving at about $43 a slot, and MSC still charges $91/teu in piracy and Suez surcharges through October. The Loadstar (02)
  • War-risk cover for one tanker crossing the Black Sea is now about $2.5m, up from about $200,000, a Lukoil Bulgaria manager says. Russian Baltic grain loadings jumped from 216,000t in August to 1.16m t in September as exports shift away from the Black Sea. TokenPost, Splash247 (06)
  • Hapag-Lloyd’s stop on new bookings to Manila, Batangas and Subic Bay runs to the end of December, blamed on “severe constraints on container returns”. Some truckers have waited up to 40 days to return empties. Splash247 (07)
  • More than 100 workers at Chattogram began a hunger strike on 12 October against DP World’s 15-year deal for the New Mooring Container Terminal, which handles about 44% of the port’s boxes. Splash247 (14)
  • Mobile, Gulfport and Pascagoula are back to normal after Hurricane Isaias, but Pensacola, Destin, Panama City and Port St. Joe still have commercial ship movements suspended. Baird Maritime (13)
  • The UK’s Maritime and Coastguard Agency told ships to plan for unreliable GPS. Windward counted an average of 5,131 jamming incidents a day in Q3, which makes AIS-based ETAs in the Gulf, Black Sea and Baltic shaky. Splash247 (15)

Rates and markets

  • Drewry’s World Container Index fell 2% to $4,351 per 40ft in the week to 8 October. Carriers have filed 19 October FAKs (freight-all-kinds rates) of $4,500 to North Europe while Xeneta’s spot average sits at $3,645. DCN, Xeneta (03)
  • Global air cargo rates in September were 25% above a year earlier on tonnage up 9%, WorldACD says. Jet fuel was up 108% year on year by 2 October and has not yet fed into rates, TAC Index reports. WorldACD, TAC Index (04)
  • The Port of Los Angeles handled 1,042,652 TEU in September, its busiest month in 118 years, with loaded imports up 19% year on year. Port of Los Angeles (08)
  • US diesel averaged $6.199 a gallon in the week of 5 October, down 18.3 cents on the week but $2.49 above a year ago. J.B. Hunt reports Q3 results on Thursday. EIA, Talk Business & Politics (12)

Tariffs, customs and policy

  • The US Court of International Trade certified a nationwide class of importers who paid IEEPA tariffs and never sued; the court estimates about $30bn would otherwise stay with the government. No refunds move yet. Supply Chain Dive, National Law Review (05)
  • Trump said at a 10 October rally that the US will make a new trade deal with Mexico and does not need Canada. Mexico’s President Sheinbaum said on 12 October there is “no final agreement yet”. The Rio Times (09)

Forwarders, carriers and deals

  • Samsung SDS agreed to buy 100% of Korean air consolidator Woojung Air, which sells space to more than 1,200 forwarders and made a 1.4% operating margin last year. The Loadstar (11)

Software, AI and automation

  • FMCSA gave driverless trucks a five-year exemption to use cab-mounted warning beacons instead of warning triangles, and Kodiak is hauling on a 435-mile Dallas–Laredo lane with a safety driver on board. FreightWaves, FreightWaves (10)

Coming up

  • 13 October: closed trade court conference in the IEEPA refund class action (05)
  • 14 October: EIA weekly diesel price (12)
  • 15 October: J.B. Hunt Q3 results, after the market closes (12)
  • 19 October: carriers’ Asia–Europe FAK increases take effect (03); refund-related motions due for IEEPA entries that also carry AD/CVD duties (05)
  • 22 October: proposed scheduling for the IEEPA refund class due (05)
  • 27 October: Gemini’s AE12 first Suez sailing leaves Tanjung Pelepas (02)
  • 3 November: US midterm elections (09)
  • 9 November: government response due on AD/CVD refund motions (05)
  • End of December: Hapag-Lloyd’s Philippine booking stop due to end (07)