CMA CGM and Maersk Hike Fuel and Peak Season Surcharges as Middle East Crisis Drives Record Shipping Costs
Escalating fuel prices and geopolitical disruption around the Strait of Hormuz are pushing global container freight costs sharply higher, as CMA CGM and Maersk roll out new emergency fuel and peak season surcharges across key trade lanes. The moves increase end-to-end logistics costs for agricultural exporters and importers, particularly on Asia–Middle East, India-related and Europe-linked corridors. With Brent crude back above US$108 per barrel and war‑related route risks rising, traders face a new round of freight-driven inflation in food commodity supply chains.
The combination of bunker surcharges, war-risk premia and inland fuel add-ons is tightening margins for shippers of grains, oilseeds, rice, sugar and refrigerated products. Carriers’ latest pricing actions signal that elevated energy and insurance costs are likely to be passed through to cargo owners well into the second quarter of 2026.
Introduction
CMA CGM has announced further increases to its Emergency Fuel Surcharge (EFS) for India-related trades, effective April 18, 2026, citing a sharp rise in bunker prices following the Middle East conflict and the reopening of global fuel markets in early March. In parallel, Maersk has revised its Peak Season Surcharge (PSS) on flows from major Asian origins to ports in Oman, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, effective March 30, 2026.
These carrier decisions come against a backdrop of extreme volatility in crude benchmarks. Brent has surged past US$108–116 per barrel in recent sessions as the Iran war disrupts shipping routes around the Arabian Peninsula and heightens the risk premium on Middle Eastern energy exports. For agricultural commodity markets, the resulting step-up in ocean and inland freight threatens to erode competitiveness, particularly for low-margin bulk and containerised shipments.
🌍 Immediate Market Impact
The latest EFS and PSS revisions add a new layer of cost to already strained shipping networks serving food and feed flows between Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. CMA CGM’s India advisory confirms higher fuel surcharges on containerised traffic, while Maersk’s update lifts peak season charges on exports from China, wider Northeast and Southeast Asia into key Middle East gateways such as Salalah, Sohar, Khor Fakkan and Jeddah.
At the same time, industry data show carriers across alliances implementing emergency bunker surcharges in March in response to Hormuz-related fuel transit disruptions, with some conflict surcharges reaching US$1,500–3,000 per container on affected legs. For agricultural shippers, these cost additions are likely to feed directly into basis levels, FOB offers and delivered CIF prices, raising landed costs for importers in the Middle East, South Asia and parts of Africa.
📦 Supply Chain Disruptions
The de facto closure and militarisation of the Strait of Hormuz have forced widespread rerouting of energy and container traffic, increasing voyage distances and bunker consumption for vessels serving Asia–Europe and Asia–Middle East corridors. Higher bunker costs are being compounded by war-risk insurance premiums, adding to the urgency for carriers to recoup expenses through surcharges.
For India-linked trades, CMA CGM’s rising EFS and inland fuel surcharges extend cost pressure from port-to-port moves into domestic road and rail legs, raising the total logistics bill from hinterland grain silos, oilseed crushers, sugar mills and cold-storage facilities to gateway ports. Maersk’s global Emergency Bunker Surcharge (EBS), applied from late March, further embeds higher fuel costs into base freight levels, intensifying pressure on exporters shipping to distant consumption markets.
📊 Commodities Potentially Affected
- Grains (wheat, corn, barley) – Heavily traded in bulk and containers on Asia–Middle East and Black Sea–Asia routes; higher freight raises CIF costs for import-dependent markets in the Gulf and South Asia.
- Rice – India, Pakistan and Southeast Asia rely on container and breakbulk shipments to the Middle East and Africa; elevated surcharges threaten price-sensitive tenders and government buying programs.
- Oilseeds and vegetable oils – Soybean, rapeseed and palm oil flows from South America and Southeast Asia into MENA and South Asia face higher freight and insurance costs, widening spreads between origins.
- Sugar – Brazil, India and Thailand exports into the Middle East and North Africa could see delivered price inflation, affecting refiner margins and consumer prices.
- Animal feed ingredients – Soymeal, DDGS and feed barley imports into livestock-intensive markets in the Gulf and North Africa are vulnerable to higher freight, potentially raising meat and dairy production costs.
- Refrigerated products – Fruits, vegetables, dairy and meat shipped in reefer containers along Asia–Gulf and Europe–Gulf lanes are highly sensitive to incremental per‑box surcharges.
🌎 Regional Trade Implications
For Middle Eastern importers, particularly in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the cost of securing food and feed supplies is rising just as regional energy exports are constrained. The combination of Brent above US$110, record Dubai crude assessments over US$120 per barrel, and constrained Hormuz transit has intensified competition for alternative routes and tonnage.
Exporters with shorter-haul alternatives or overland options – for example, Black Sea suppliers into the Near East, or intra-Asian grain and rice suppliers – may gain a relative advantage over longer-distance origins facing higher bunker and conflict surcharges. Conversely, India’s containerised exporters, already exposed to rising EFS and inland fuel charges, risk losing price competitiveness in marginal destination markets unless they can renegotiate freight contracts or secure regulatory relief.
🧭 Market Outlook
In the short term, as long as crude benchmarks remain elevated and the Middle East conflict continues to disrupt key maritime chokepoints, carriers are likely to maintain or further adjust emergency fuel and peak season surcharges. Analysts see Brent crude on track for record monthly gains, underlining the probability of sustained bunker price pressure into the next fixing cycles.
For agricultural commodity traders, the immediate focus will be on recalculating delivered costs, repricing forward contracts and reassessing origin–destination arbitrage in light of higher freight. Any improvement in security conditions in the Strait of Hormuz and adjoining routes could trigger a rapid easing in risk premia and, by extension, surcharges. Until then, volatility in both energy and freight markets is likely to remain a central driver of basis and FOB/CIF differentials.
CMB Market Insight
The latest surcharge actions by CMA CGM and Maersk confirm that the 2026 Middle East crisis is transmitting directly into agricultural trade economics via the freight channel. Elevated bunker prices, conflict surcharges and inland fuel adjustments are reshaping cost curves for key exporters and importers, particularly along Asia–Middle East and India-related corridors.
Strategically, market participants should treat freight as a core risk variable alongside futures prices, FX and policy. Securing medium-term freight agreements where possible, diversifying origins and routes, and closely tracking carrier advisories on EFS, EBS and PSS changes will be critical for protecting margins in grain, oilseed, rice, sugar and perishable supply chains over the coming quarters.