US/Israel-Iran conflict puts further pressure on the logistics sector
The recent escalation between the United States, Israel and Iran is creating new pressure on the international logistics sector. While the Red Sea and Suez corridor were already under strain, this conflict is now adding further risk around the Strait of Hormuz; one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints for oil, gas and international trade flows. According to the IEA, an average of around 20 million barrels of oil per day moved through the Strait of Hormuz in 2025, while about 20% of global LNG trade also passed through this route.
The actual impact is already visible. Rising tensions have increased security risks for commercial shipping, pushed up insurance costs and disrupted vessel traffic around Hormuz. Lloyd’s List reported in early March that traffic through the strait had fallen sharply and that shipowners, tanker operators and container carriers had become far more cautious about transiting the area.
For the logistics sector, this immediately translates into higher costs, greater route uncertainty and more pressure on lead times. When vessels have to wait, reroute or operate under additional security measures, supply chains slow down. UNCTAD and the World Bank have already shown that disruption in the Red Sea and Suez corridor leads to longer sailing times, higher fuel costs, greater freight-rate volatility and added pressure on global supply chains. Any further escalation involving Iran would intensify this, because it would put two strategic maritime corridors under pressure at the same time.
The potential impact is even broader. If tensions continue to rise, the result could be longer-lasting disruption to energy exports, higher bunker and fuel prices, lower schedule reliability and more pressure on capacity across alternative routes. That would affect not only oil and gas flows, but also general freight forwarding, procurement and inventory planning. The IEA has stated that it is closely monitoring the Middle East situation because of the potential for continued disruption to energy flows through Hormuz.
For companies active in international trade and logistics, the message is clear: flexibility, scenario planning and timely communication across the supply chain are critical right now. In a market where geopolitical risk directly affects transport, capacity and cost, supply chain resilience is becoming more important than ever.
