Global bunker fuel prices have surged by 30-35% over the past week as the US-Iran conflict and closure of the Strait of Hormuz has sent crude oil prices soaring to multiyear highs, leading container carriers to implement emergency surcharges.

Global container shipping major CMA CGM implemented an emergency fuel surcharge for all long hauls of $150/TEU (20-foot equivalent unit) for dry shipping on the head haul and $75/TEU on the back haul effective for vessels loading on 16 March.

The charge will remain in place until further notice.

MSC, the largest container shipping volume with about 20.6% of global capacity, announced emergency fuel surcharges of $60/TEU to $190/TEU depending on the route, also effective 16 March and until further notice.

Lars Jensen, president of consultant Vespucci Maritime, said carriers’ variable bunker fuel surcharges are most often adjusted quarterly with a one-month notice.

“This means the current surge in oil prices will begin to be reflected in the bunker surcharges for Q3 2026 as Q2 surcharges were announced just prior to the Hormuz crisis,” Jensen said.

Global bunker prices from Ship & Bunker show a 39% increase for very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) in Houston from 2 March.

Increases at ports in New York, Rotterdam, and Santos, Brazil, are up by 25-30% week on week, while the largest increase is seen in Singapore, where prices have surged to $822/tonne, an increase of 60% from 2 March.

Container ships and costs for shipping containers are relevant to the chemical industry because while most chemicals are liquids and are shipped in tankers, container ships transport polymers, such as polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), which are shipped in pellets. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is also shipped in containers.

They also transport liquid chemicals in isotanks.

Source: By Adam Yanelli, ICIS