Danish shipping giant Maersk on Friday suspended two services connecting the Middle East with Asia and Europe, as the Iran war continues to disrupt global supply chains.
The company, widely regarded as a barometer of global trade, said the decision to suspend its FM1 service, which connects the Far East and the Middle East, and its ME11 service, which connects the Middle East and Europe, was a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of its employees and ships.
This comes as the US-Israel-led war against Iran enters its seventh day, with shipping traffic through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz effectively halted due to the escalation of the conflict.
This waterway is an important narrow maritime corridor connecting the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Typically, about 20% of the world’s oil and gas passes through it.
However, since the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28, major container shipping companies have suspended operations through the Strait of Hormuz and rerouted ships to areas near the southern tip of Africa.
The crisis has left 147 container ships stuck in the Persian Gulf, causing delays, port congestion and higher freight rates, with ripples across global markets, according to cargo analysis firm Zeneta.
Maersk has announced that its shuttle services in the Persian Gulf region will be suspended until further notice due to changes to its FM1 and ME11 services.
Maersk said its ME1 service, which connects the Middle East and Northern Europe, will temporarily suspend calls from Jebel Ali, a major port city in the United Arab Emirates, while calls to India and Oman will continue.
Maersk shares were last down 0.6%.
