Tuesday, October 20, 2026
The news that moves freight
The Freight Brief Oct 13, 2026

What’s going on in freight — Tuesday 13 October 2026

What’s going on in freight — Tuesday 13 October 2026

The Gulf war is squeezing every way around Hormuz: ships were hit in the strait, the Red Sea alternative came under fire, and carriers are rebuilding networks around bypass ports. Elsewhere, ocean rates are splitting by trade, air rates are firming into peak, and November surcharges and new US customs rules are landing on quotes.

War, chokepoints and disruption

  • Six commercial ships, including an inbound container ship, were reported hit in and around the Strait of Hormuz on 11 October, and Iran called the US reply to its reopening proposal “insufficient”. At least 10 supertankers heading for Fujairah have stopped or turned back. (gCaptain, gCaptain/Reuters, gCaptain/Bloomberg) [01]
  • The Saudi-led coalition struck Houthi sites in Yemen on 13 October, three days after a Houthi strike on Riyadh killed 13 people. That puts the Red Sea, the Gulf’s main remaining sea route, closer to the fighting. (gCaptain/Reuters, gCaptain/Bloomberg) [02]
  • Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd are restarting their Gemini Asia–Middle East loop, suspended since 27 March, but it will call Khor Fakkan instead of Jebel Ali. The first ship leaves Qingdao on 17 October. (The Loadstar, Container News) [03]
  • A cargo ship bound for Romania sank off Bulgaria after a drone attack, with 11 crew missing, and a second ship was hit. That is the second sinking off Bulgaria in a week. On 12 October the EU added 826 companies and 743 executives, including Russian shipyards, to its sanctions list. (gCaptain/Reuters, gCaptain) [07]
  • Bangladesh port workers held hunger strikes against DP World’s new 15-year concession at Chittagong’s NCT terminal. Their leaders threaten a “fast unto death” from 19 October. (The Loadstar, Maritime Gateway) [14]

Rates and markets

  • Drewry’s World Container Index fell 2% to US$4,351 per 40ft on 8 October. Shanghai–Los Angeles is holding near its peak, while Asia–Europe keeps falling. (Container News, FreightWaves) [04]
  • Global air cargo spot rates in week 40 were 32% above a year earlier, according to WorldACD, and China–US averaged US$6.05/kg in September. Airlines are cutting winter passenger schedules, which means less belly space. (Air Cargo Week, Air Cargo Week) [05]
  • Maersk is raising its US inland fuel surcharge from US$140 to US$215 per container from 1 November, even though weekly diesel has eased to US$6.199 a gallon. CMA CGM has added Asia–Africa peak surcharges and a US$300/TEU increase on Oceania–Americas. (Container News, Container News) [06]
  • Cross-border truck capacity with Mexico and Canada is still tight: the TRAFFIX index reads 54 and 57, and CANACAR estimates about 25,000 Mexican drivers have lost US visas. CBP has also proposed advance crew data rules for cross-border trains. (FreightWaves, Federal Register) [09]

Tariffs, customs and policy

  • From 14 October, CBP will count US-melted steel and US-smelted aluminium as “U.S. content” when applying the 25% Section 232 duty to USMCA metal goods. Brokers will need mill paperwork to claim it. (Federal Register) [08]
  • The Court of International Trade certified a class of importers who paid IEEPA tariffs and never sued. Without the class, about $30bn would stay with the government. The next scheduling filings are due 22 October. (Supply Chain Dive, Bloomberg Law) [10]

Forwarders, carriers and deals

  • Samsung SDS has agreed to buy Woojung Air, an Incheon air consolidator that sells space to more than 1,200 forwarders. A rival now owns their wholesale supplier. (The Loadstar, Air Cargo News) [11]

Software, AI and automation

  • Samsara opened its AI agent builder to all customers. US forwarder Freight Right launched an MCP connection that lets shippers quote, track and book from ChatGPT, Claude and Copilot. (FreightWaves, The Loadstar) [12]
  • Bot Auto says its driverless-truck hardware will cost about $50,000 per truck on Lenovo and Nvidia kit from Q1 2027. Werner’s CFO says the economics of autonomy are “not favorable” yet. (FreightWaves, Trucking Dive) [13]

Coming up

  • 14 October: the US-content guidance for USMCA metal goods takes effect; next EIA diesel price update.
  • 15 October: Drewry WCI; CMA CGM US$200/TEU surcharge on Southeast Asia–northern West Africa starts.
  • 16 October: SCFI.
  • 17 October: the first relaunched Gemini FM1/AGX sailing leaves Qingdao.
  • 19 October: deadline for the Chittagong “fast unto death” threat.
  • 22 October: IEEPA class-action scheduling filings due; CMA CGM US$750/TEU Far East–Durban surcharge starts.
  • 1 November: Maersk US inland fuel surcharge rises to US$215.
  • 2 November: CMA CGM US$300/TEU Oceania–Americas increase.
  • 15 November: new Swire Shipping terminal charges at Long Beach and Oakland.
  • 16 November: first FM1 ship due at Khor Fakkan.
  • 14 December: comments close on CBP’s cross-border rail crew data rule.