Published on June 17, 2026, multiple mainstream shipping media and financial institutions issued joint industry alerts regarding the full reopening of the Hormuz Strait, the core maritime artery carrying nearly one quarter of the world's seaborne oil and a large volume of container cargo.
After months of diplomatic mediation, the United States and Iran finalized the text of a ceasefire memorandum, with a formal signing ceremony scheduled for June 19 in Geneva, Switzerland. Local authorities confirmed that the Hormuz Strait will be fully open to all merchant vessels after the signing. For 108 consecutive days previously, frequent regional conflicts forced most shipping lines to abandon the strait and take long detours around the Cape of Good Hope, triggering a series of severe industry problems.
Major global container carriers have released official response statements one after another. Hapag-Lloyd stated it will arrange all four vessels stranded in the Persian Gulf to pass through the Hormuz Strait and complete evacuation by early next week. Maersk will adjust its vessel scheduling system in advance, gradually restore direct Asia-Middle East and Asia-Europe routes passing through the strait, and cancel temporary Cape detour surcharges within 10 working days.
The long-term blockade of the strait brought huge extra expenses to global exporters. Vessels taking the Cape route faced an extra 10 to 14 days of transit time, plus surcharges for detour, war risk insurance and peak season risk fees, pushing up overall logistics costs by 18% to 30% for China-Europe and China-Middle East shipments. High Goldman Sachs released a research report on June 17, pointing out that the reopening of the waterway will release about 9%-11% of locked global shipping capacity, reverse the tight supply of vessels, and drive continuous declines in spot freight rates.
Industry analysts remind foreign trade manufacturers and logistics agents to adjust shipping plans reasonably. In the short term, freight rates will fluctuate slightly due to the concentrated evacuation of stranded ships, but the overall downward trend is clear. Enterprises with goods scheduled to ship to the Middle East and Europe can appropriately delay booking to wait for cost reductions, while long-term contract customers can renegotiate preferential rates with carriers based on the new market situation.
