Iran war upends global transport

Restrictions on Gulf airspace and the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz are causing transport turmoil.

Emirati and Qatari airports — key hubs connecting Asia to Europe — are allowing very limited services, and European rivals see an opportunity after years of losing market share: A third of the continent’s flights to Asia go via the Gulf. Carriers are “poring over maps” to see if they can offer alternatives, the Financial Times’ transport correspondent reported.

The shipping industry is similarly disrupted and has become a “wild west,” as transport firms raise prices up to fourfold and sometimes abandon containers hundreds of miles from their destinations rather than risk the Strait, where ships and ports have been hit by Iranian missiles and drones.