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The trickle of vessels transiting Hormuz strengthened into a flow almost overnight after the International Maritime Organization (IMO) published its Strait of Hormuz evacuation plan this week, following consultation with Iranian and Omani authorities. One carrier to take early advantage was Maersk, which last night sent its 4,200 teuMaersk Baltimoreand an unnamed time-chartered vessel outbound from the strait. It reported: “The transits were completed in close coordination with our security partners and followed thorough security assessments. We are pleased to confirm that both journeys were successful, with no issues.” The carrier added: “The decision to initiate transit the Strait of Hormuz was taken following thorough security assessments and based on recommendations from security partners in the region.” Maersk now has “three remaining vessels in the Gulf and, at a later stage, we will pursue one additional transit through the Strait of Hormuz”. The other two vessels, Maersk said, would continue to be deployed on intra-Gulf services, although it added that the majority of its Gulf-bound shipments affected by the strait’s closure had been completed. The carrier said: “At the onset of the conflict, 47,000 containers bound for the Gulf region were aboard Maersk vessels. Of these, 44,000 have been delivered, while a further 3,000 are pending the final leg.” Other vessels understood to have exited the Persian Gulf in the past 24 hours include Hapag-Lloyd’s 10,000 teuHaiphong Expressand Yang Ming’s 3,000 teuYM Credibility. Under the IMO plan, two navigation routes have been developed – a northern route administered by Iran, and a southern route administered by Oman – and vessels currently stuck in the Persian Gulf will be notified by either the UKMTO or MICA centre to proceed to a waiting area at the edge of the strait. “A vessel can begin coordinating its desired route with the relevant coastal state (Islamic Republic of Iran or Sultanate of Oman) at any time after notification,” the IMO said. “Vessels may proceed on their desired route as soon as confirmation is received from the relevant coastal state.” According to maritime intelligence firm Windward, 31 vessels of all kinds transited the strait yesterday, 11 inbound and 20 northbound, but warned that full operational normality had yet to resume. “The strait is not yet fully open. Iran permit requirements for the northern corridor and the uncleared Traffic Separation Scheme remain,” Windward said. “However, the convergence of accelerating transit volumes, formal safe-passage routing, and the return of commercially neutral tonnage marks a decisive shift in trajectory,” it added. Adding to the confusion was a statement by Iran last night which claimed it had not agreed to the southern corridor, which it claimed was “unacceptable and poses serious safety risks” – potentially paving the way for the country to launch new projectile attacks on shipping. Meanwhile, the fragile détente between the US and Iran also appears to have encouraged carriers to begin a tentative return to Red Sea routings on Asia-Europe services, according to Xeneta. The intelligence platform reported that the Ocean Alliance’s NEU5 Asia-Europe service, staffed exclusively by CMA CGM vessels, “now reroutes its full eastbound leg via Suez, while westbound stays on the Cape [diversion], cutting the round trip by a week to 98 days”. Xeneta added that Maersk MECL1 North America-Middle East service, on which CMA CGM and APL charter slots, is also experimenting with transiting Suez and the Red Sea on its eastbound leg.

European airlines will continue to face longer routings and higher operating costs after EASA renewed its warning against flying over Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon, despite signs that aviation activity across the Gulf has recovered sharply since the recent conflict. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) yesterday published its Conflict Zone Information Bulletin, extending its guidance until 1 July, and maintaining its recommendation that operators do not fly through the airspace of Iran, Iraq and Lebanon. It also continues to advise ‘heightened caution’ when operating through Bahrain, Kuwait, Israel, Jordan, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. While EASA acknowledged that the regional security situation had improved following the ceasefire, it warned that the truce remained fragile and that risks from missile activity, drones, air defence systems, and potential military escalation continued to justify the restrictions. “The situation has moved from an active intense conflict, with a high number of kinetic events, to a state of heightened tension, with limited, sporadic, and confined kinetic events. Short-term violations of the US-Iran ceasefire therefore remain possible… “While risks to aircraft operating in this airspace can be reduced through proactive airspace management and contingency measures, such mitigations are less effective in addressing risks to aviation infrastructure on the ground. Operators should therefore consider the potential vulnerability of airports and other critical aviation facilities when conducting risk assessments for their operations in the region.” The renewed guidance comes as new analysis from aviation intelligence company IBA suggests Gulf aviation has moved firmly into recovery mode. According to IBA, daily flights at Doha have increased from just 42 in March to 570 this month, while Dubai has recovered from 499 to 844 daily flights, and Abu Dhabi from 174 to 462. Gulf carriers have also brought substantial numbers of aircraft back into service, with Qatar Airways reducing parked aircraft from a peak of 181 in March to 45 in June, while Emirates cut its inactive fleet from 44 aircraft to 28. However, the recovery has yet to restore operational efficiency. IBA found average Europe-Asia flight times had increased from nine hours before the conflict to nine hours 47 minutes this month, reflecting airlines’ continued use of longer routings around restricted airspace. Jordan Amos, aircraft asset manager at IBA, said: “Major Gulf hubs have moved from acute disruption towards sustained recovery over the past three months, with flight activity increasing significantly as airspace restrictions ease and confidence returns across the region.” IBA added that although the market had “clearly moved out of crisis mode”, the effects of the disruption remained visible across fleet deployment, routing, and utilisation patterns”. It added airlines and lessors continued to operate in an environment that was stabilising, but was “not yet fully aligned with pre-conflict norms”. Recovery, however, remains uneven. While Gulf carriers have steadily rebuilt schedules and reactivated aircraft, many European and Asian airlines continue to wait for regulators to relax conflict-zone guidance before restoring services. British Airways’ planned partial resumption of Heathrow-Dubai services remains contingent on regulatory approval, while KLM has extended cancellations to Gulf destinations, and Cathay Pacific continues to suspend services to Dubai and Riyadh until at least the end of August. Martinair Cargo’s Dubai freighter operations also remain suspended. David Kerr, founder of JTD Advisory, said ahead of EASA’s decision that the regulator’s latest bulletin would be the first real test of whether aviation authorities considered the post-ceasefire environment materially safer. “The MOU is signed. The NOTAM is still in force. Those are different things,” he wrote, arguing that any return to normal routings would depend first on regulators easing conflict-zone guidance before airlines, insurers, and operators could begin restoring services. The differing pace of recovery highlights the divide between Gulf-based airlines, which have restored much of their regional flying, and international carriers that remain constrained by European safety guidance, insurance requirements, and corporate risk assessments. Until those restrictions begin to ease, airlines are likely to continue operating longer routings between Europe and Asia.

Demand for data centres is surging across Europe and the Middle East, with a host of new projects being announced, but this brings issues of energy supply, leading to suspicions that many of these projects may not see the light of day. More than 500 data centre projects have been announced across Europe alone, which would add some 16gw of energy demand to the continent’s already stretched energy grid – while in the Middle East, 170 such projects are planned. Martyn Lawns, CEO of global industrial projects at DHL Global Forwarding, toldThe Loadstar: “We are seeing growth all across Europe when it comes to data centres, and we are also seeing demand surge for similar projects in the Middle East. “But you need a good source of power for these. So will all the data centres that have been announced be built? Probably not, not at the pace they are being announced, because you are also competing for that secure supply of electricity to run them.” Mr Lawns noted that for projects in the Middle East, the issue of energy supply may be less pressing, thanks to the region’s large supply of oil and developments from a sustainable energy perspective. For European projects, the issue of energy security was thrust to the fore by the war in Iran, prompting a shift to developing data centres in Spain and Portugal, where it is hoped access to solar energy may provide the energy security needed. Mr Lawns added: “We are seeing demand for battery energy storage [Bes] units supporting data centre growth. These units weigh 40-43 tonnes, but the next generation will go up to 60-80 tonnes, and while they are the size of a 40ft container, available capacity is an issue. “The number of fires on vessels led to IMO regulations limiting sea freight transport to putting such cargo on deck, taking capacity out of the market, and carriers also limit weight to 40 tonnes, meaning we have to charter multipurpose vessels to move the units.” Despite the added complexity associated with Bes units, the need for them in Europe could not currently be more pronounced, as energy infrastructure has been failing amid one of the most severe heatwaves in the continent’s recorded history. And the pressure on outdated infrastructure will only grow with the AI boom, with new data centres expected to see demand for energy leap from 12gw to 28gw, despite capacity for just a further 5gw having been announced. Indeed, such is the demand for data centre energy supply, that it is even leading to delays in shipbuilding, with Alphaliner reporting that diesel generators used by ships are being bought in to power data centres. Alphaliner noted: “Most data centres use large industrial diesel generator sets in the 1–4 MW range. These are designed as backup power in case of regional power outages, or to support peak electricity demand that could otherwise destabilise the local power grid. “Marine diesels with attached generator sets have become a popular choice here, due to their proven reliability. A single Amazon data centre in Virginia, for example, uses no fewer than 93 diesel generator sets of 2,500kw each.” This size has proved popular for data centres as the generator can be carried in a 40ft container, easing transport costs and complications, with shipowners telling Alphaliner the demand had led to challenges, including lead times and price, with the procurement of auxiliary diesels.

South Korean 3PL LX Pantos has expanded its autonomous trucking route across the US into a round-trip operation system. LX Pantos initially trucked Hyundai Mobis automotive parts from the west coast to the east coast, using Class 8 self-driving trucks operated by compatriot haulier start-up Mars Auto. Satisfied with the safety of autonomous trucks, and to reduce empty mileage, LX Pantos is now trucking construction materials between US coasts in the opposite direction. Through this collaboration, the route across the US has increased from approximately 3,500km one-way to a more than 7,000km round-trip, allowing Mars Auto and LX Pantos to break their own record for the world’s longest autonomous transport route. The firms said that, with cargo trucked both ways, they will improve their empty mileage rate – the industry average being around about 16.7%, but they anticipate they can reduce this to approximately 5%. LX Pantos department head Lee Beom-in said: “We plan to develop a new transportation model by combining the potential of autonomous driving technology, verified in actual transportation sites.“ The number of autonomous trucks doing deliveries in the US is unknown, but believed to be fewer than 100, as self-driving has not taken off dramatically. Mars Auto did not disclose how many autonomous trucks it operates, but claims to have accumulated 1.2m autonomous miles. The company, which also counts CJ Logistics among its clients, entered the US market in 2024, retrofitting three trucks with its technology. CEO Park Il-Soo said: “This is a case confirming the potential for expanding safer and more economical autonomous driving within the North American logistics ecosystem.” LX Pantos’s move to ship more goods on self-driving trucks is also in line with the US government’s BUILD America 250 Act, introduced in May, calling for the commercialisation of autonomous trucks. Building Unrivalled Infrastructure and Long-term Development for America’s 250th Act is primarily a five-year surface transportation reauthorisation bill, covering highways, bridges, transit, rail, and freight programmes. It includes the first federal framework for self-driving trucks, covering safety standards and a performance-based regulation. Next week The Loadstar will publish an interview in association with LX Pantos, in which president and CEO Yong Ho Lee discusses shifting supply chains, growth opportunities in key markets, and the role of technology in the future of logistics

Container freight rates from China to India have substantially strengthened in the past few weeks, thanks to strong demand for vessel space by Indian importers, according to industry sources. For example, spot rates from Shanghai to Nhava Sheva (JNPA) have surged 25% to 30% since end-May, after cooling for a while, sources said. Carriers are booking cargo for the port pair at around $2,300 per teu and $2,400 per 40ft, from $1,800 and $1,900 a month ago. Growing booking demand for India has sent Shanghai-Chennai rates up even steeper: for 20ft bookings, a near 50% gain in a month, to $1,800 per teu from $1,200: while for 40ft boxes, up to the same level from about $1,400, according to data. India is a large consumer of goods imported from China, both for the industrial and household sectors. Seasonality is a factor for the current surge in demand and rate activity by carriers, sources believe, as imports typically gather pace ahead of the local festival season that begins in August/September. Pushpank Kaushik, CEO and head of business development for Indian subcontinent, Middle East & SEA at Hyderabad-based Jassper Shipping, toldThe Loadstar: “While businesses may need to account for some market fluctuations, trade volumes between India and China remain strong.” The elevated China-India rates come despite more capacity entering the tradelane, especially from CULines. The Chinese carrier began two new shuttle services connecting China and India to the Middle East in April, branded the CGX China-Middle East Express and CGS China-Khor Fakkan Express. The former, a standalone service, includes a call at Mundra in India. Other regional carriers, like Interasia Lines, SITC, and Sinolines, have also boosted capacity on intra-Asia trades connecting to India to capitalise on soaring volumes out of China. Cosco, Wan Hai, RCL, Evergreen, and TS Lines are the predominant intra-Asia operators. China is New Delhi’s largest trading partner, though the bilateral commerce pattern hugely favours Beijing. According to provisional official data, Indian imports from China in fiscal year 2025-26 were valued at some $132bn, up 16% year on year, compared with just some $20bn of trade in the reverse direction. Meanwhile, CULines is rapidly expanding services beyond the mainstay intra-Asia market coverage in a bid to transform itself into a mainline operator. It recently established a subsidiary in Turkey to support intercontinental trunk and regional feeder services. “Following the successful establishment of its CUL India, CUL West Asia (Dubai) and CUL Japan operations over the past year, it completes the layout of the company’s Europe-Asia-Africa regional service network,” it said.

Key takeaway: An insider theory connects the dots between alleged covert terminations, culture change, and a gutted technology department. The logic is compelling. The deal math? Not so much. But M&A has its own rules… When Expeditors International (EXPD) eliminated about 2,000 positions beginning in 2023, the company did not call them layoffs. Recap for the uninitiated According to a federal lawsuit filed by a former employee, previous CEO Jeffrey Musser sent a confidential email to senior leadership on 24 ...

AP Moller-Maersk has promoted Scott Elliott (above) to the position of regional president for Asia Pacific, after serving in the role on an interim basis since January this year. Mr Elliott joined Maersk in 2020 as regional chief financial officer for the region, after spending just over two years as chief financial officer for global forwarding at the Toll Group headquarters in Singapore. Prior to that he spent over 15 years with Ceva Logistics, holding a variety of senior management roles in the US, China, the Netherlands and Australia, “giving him a rare combination of operational, commercial and financial leadership across the world’s most dynamic trade lanes”, a Maersk statement said. “Asia Pacific is the world’s largest regional economy, key to global trade and central to Maersk’s growth ambitions,” Mr Elliott said. “It’s an honour to work with our exceptional team, customers, and partners across the region. “We have built strong momentum together, and I look forward to deepening those relationships and supporting our customers’ growth,” he added. Meanwhile, Maersk advised that it has begun “the process of appointing a permanent regional head of finance for Asia Pacific”.