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Global container volumes reached 16.2 million TEUs in April 2026, the first full month reflecting the impact of the Gulf Crisis and Strait of Hormuz closures, according to the latest data from Container Trades Statistics Ltd
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April volumes were up 4% year-on-year and 1.6% higher month-on-month from March 2026
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Year-to-date global volumes remain 5% above 2025 levels, demonstrating the resilience of international trade despite geopolitical disruptions
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Global Price Index surged more than 12% to 89 points in April from 79 points in March, highlighting mounting pressure on freight rates
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The sharp rise in freight pricing is the largest monthly increase since the Red Sea diversions in June 2024
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Sub-Saharan Africa emerged as one of the strongest-performing regions, with year-to-date exports up 10% and imports up 15%
Global container volumes reached 16.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in April 2026, the first full month reflecting the impact of the Gulf crisis and Strait of Hormuz closure, according to the latest data from Container Trades Statistics Ltd (CTS).
This represents a 4% increase compared to April 2025 and a 1.6% rise from March, despite freight rates experiencing their steepest monthly increase in nearly two years.
Year-to-date volumes remain 5% above 2025 levels, underscoring what industry analysts describe as a cardinal rule of global commerce: cargo behaves much like water, finding alternative routes when traditional pathways become restricted.
READ: Global container volumes sustain growth in Q1 despite Middle East crisis
The Global Price Index jumped to 89 points in April, a month-on-month increase of more than 12% from March’s reading of 79 points. The last time the index recorded a single-month gain of that magnitude was June 2024, at the peak of Red Sea vessel diversions, when widespread rerouting effectively stripped capacity from the market.
Middle East trade takes the hardest hit
The regional breakdown lays bare the geographic concentration of the crisis. The Indian Sub-Continent and Middle East (ISCME) was the only region to record a year-on-year decline in imports, falling 19% compared with April 2025. The drop was driven by reduced cargo flows from virtually all exporting regions, with South and Central America the sole exception.
Year-to-date figures reinforce the pattern. Every region posted import growth except North America and the ISCME, which declined 2% and 4%, respectively. For North America, the weakness was driven primarily by reduced inbound cargo from Europe, the Indian Sub-Continent and Middle East, and South and Central America. For the Middle East region itself, the steepest contractions came from European-origin freight and intra-regional trade.
On the export side, the ISCME and North America were the only regions to record year-on-year declines in April, falling 15% and 3%, respectively. On a year-to-date basis, the ISCME is down 7% for exports, with the largest reductions concentrated in shipments to Europe and within the region’s own intra-trade market, both of which have declined by more than 100,000 TEUs compared with the same period in 2025.
European exports remain 2% below 2025 levels year-to-date, though that represents an improvement from the 3% deficit recorded through March, and the trend has been gradually recovering throughout the opening months of 2026. The primary drag on European export performance is the sharp reduction in cargo moving into the ISCME, a consequence, analysts note, that comes as no surprise given the closure of the Hormuz corridor.
Against that backdrop, Sub-Saharan Africa stands out as one of the strongest-performing regions in the world. Year-to-date exports are up 10% and imports are up 15%, reflecting how alternative trade routes and emerging markets are absorbing flows diverted from disrupted corridors.
CTS said the pattern is consistent with historical precedent. Trade does not stop during periods of geopolitical disruption; it redirects, often creating new opportunities for previously smaller markets. Emerging trade lanes are now becoming an increasingly important contributor to the industry’s overall volume resilience.
The critical question for Q2
As the second quarter of 2026 begins, the Gulf Crisis is exerting an immediate and significant impact on freight pricing, while overall cargo volumes continue to demonstrate resilience. “While volumes have softened slightly in affected regions, overall trade remains robust,” CTS noted.
However, with freight rates rising at their fastest pace since previous global shipping disruptions, market participants are closely watching whether higher transportation costs will eventually begin to weigh on cargo demand and global trade volumes.
