What’s going on in freight — Thursday 22 October 2026

The Gulf war is spreading on two fronts at once: Iran claims a seven-tanker night near Hormuz and the Houthis have hit Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, pushing Brent to about $112. In the markets, Kuehne+Nagel’s beat-and-raise and record US rail intermodal volumes show who is earning from tight capacity, while Drewry’s index climbs to a 15-week high and Typhoon Champi starts to bite in East China.

War, chokepoints and disruption

• Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say seven tankers were hit in one night, but UKMTO logged only two strikes and Donald Trump called the claims “fake”. Brent still rose 3.2% to $112.27, according to CBS. (CBS News, House of Saud) [02]
• A Houthi attack on Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport on 21 October killed two people, and Aramco told staff to leave its Dhahran headquarters. Lufthansa and Air France have cancelled Saudi flights through mid-November. (Gulf News, The Business Standard (Reuters)) [03]
• All bunkering at Zhoushan stopped on 22 October with no restart date, and Taiwan cancelled 166 flights and shut its stock market for Friday as Typhoon Champi approaches. Shanghai and Ningbo were already running about four days late, Platts says. (ENGINE, Insurance Journal/Bloomberg, Hellenic Shipping News/Platts) [05]

Rates and markets

• Drewry’s World Container Index rose 2% to $4,585 per 40ft, a 15-week high, with Shanghai–Los Angeles at $8,007 and Shanghai–Rotterdam at $3,632. Carriers will blank eight Asia–Europe sailings next week, up from two. (Drewry) [04]
• Union Pacific’s domestic intermodal volume rose 13% in Q3, its fifth straight record quarter, and CSX intermodal rose 7%. Knight-Swift says it will open 2027 truck bids asking for “low-to-mid double digits”. (FreightWaves, FreightWaves) [06]

Tariffs, customs and policy

• The US Treasury blacklisted nine ships on 21 October, seven of them Panama-flagged bulk and general cargo ships, plus a Singapore port agent, a Dubai shipping agent and a Greek-Panamanian law firm, over Iran trade. (US Treasury, Splash247) [07]
• The White House closed its Section 232 case on wind turbines with no new tariff, ordering 180 days of talks instead. The existing duties on the steel and aluminium in turbine parts stay. (The White House, Reuters via Investing.com) [08]

Forwarders, carriers and deals

• Kuehne+Nagel raised its 2026 EBIT guidance to CHF 1.5–1.6bn from CHF 1.35–1.55bn after Q3 EBIT rose 53% to CHF 435m. Air EBIT jumped 84% to CHF 169m, almost level with sea’s CHF 172m. (Kuehne+Nagel, The Loadstar) [01]
• TQL filed three motions on 19 October to dismiss the carriers’ racketeering suit against it and C.H. Robinson. One argues the carrier contracts send disputes to a state court in Clermont County, Ohio. (FreightWaves) [09]
• Stord has bought AMS Fulfillment and its 10 warehouses in Los Angeles, Salt Lake City and Philadelphia for a price it calls nine figures. (FreightWaves via Yahoo Finance) [10]

Software, AI and automation

• Carrier-vetting platform Highway named Samsara the first ELD (electronic logging device) provider in its Highway Certified Network, aimed at truck identity fraud. (GlobeNewswire) [11]
• Qatar Airways Cargo has put its capacity on Pelicargo, a US quoting and booking platform for forwarders, following Emirates SkyCargo in May. (Air Cargo News, AJOT) [12]

Coming up

• Friday 23 October: foreign ministers from Britain, France and Germany meet counterparts from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Egypt in Istanbul [02]
• 23–25 October: Typhoon Champi passes northern Taiwan, then the East China coast [05]
• 1–14 November: CMA CGM’s $4,900 per 40ft Asia–West Med FAK rate applies [04]
• 3 November: US midterm elections [02]
• Around 19 November: Drewry’s week-47 World Container Index [04]
• About 20 April 2027: deadline for the first report on wind turbine trade talks [08]