Six Carrier Moves to Recheck: Jeddah Restrictions, August Rate Hikes, and New Asia Services

The first days of July brought a cluster of carrier rate, routing, and service updates into an already hot market. Drewry’s World Container Index rose 9% week on week to US$4,530 per 40-foot container in its July 2 assessment, 61% above the same week last year, extending the climb underway since late June. Six developments reported or updated around July 2–3 change something concrete for bookings: a haulage restriction, three rate actions, a new loop, and a slimmer rotation.

Carrier	Move	Scope	Effective	What it changes
Hapag-Lloyd	Carrier haulage via Jeddah unavailable for most cross-border Upper Gulf moves	Red Sea–Gulf land bridge	Until further notice	Re-plan trigger
Hapag-Lloyd	US$1,000 per container GRI	Indian Subcontinent and Pakistan to US/Canada	Gate-in from Aug 1	Cost base
Hapag-Lloyd	Base rate increase, +US$1,500–2,000 per container	India and Pakistan to North Europe/Mediterranean	Sailings from Aug 1	Cost base
HMM	US$3,000 per 40-foot container peak season surcharge	Transpacific	Jul 15	Cost base
CULines	New KCI weekly service	Northeast Asia–India/Pakistan	First sailing Jul 16	Routing option
MSC	Britannia rotation revised: Zeebrugge, Mundra, and westbound Colombo dropped	North Europe–Far East	Announced Jul 3	Routing change

Carrier developments reported or updated around July 2–3, 2026. Details and sources below.

Hapag-Lloyd restricts Jeddah haulage to the Upper Gulf

Hapag-Lloyd says its carrier-haulage solution via Jeddah is no longer available for most cross-border movements to the Upper Gulf until further notice. The restriction also applies to cargo booked with merchant haulage at Jeddah when the consignee is outside Saudi Arabia. Cargo destined for Dammam or Jubail remains an exception and can continue through the established Jeddah land bridge.

The restriction coincides with severe congestion at Jeddah. The Loadstar reported yard density of 90% and a 20–25% reduction in terminal productivity, citing industry sources. The land bridge, which discharges cargo at the Red Sea gateway and moves it overland to the Gulf, has remained attractive as an alternative to Hormuz transits, but the additional volume is putting pressure on the terminal.

The Loadstar also reports that containers on Jeddah-bound vessels without a Saudi final destination may be discharged elsewhere as authorities try to reduce terminal density. Hapag-Lloyd’s own customer notice says cargo to Dammam and Jubail can continue through the established land bridge, while cargo to Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates can be transhipped via Khor Fakkan before moving by land to Sharjah or Jebel Ali and connecting through an intra-Gulf feeder network.

On the ground, truckers cited by The Loadstar report waits of six to eight weeks to secure cargo release, while hauliers describe queues of roughly 5 km outside the port and delays of around three days to get through. Forwarders point to seasonal Hajj traffic adding to the Hormuz-avoidance transit flow.

Alternative routings are already in use. Forwarders have been steering clients toward Arabian Sea gateways such as Salalah, Khor Fakkan, and Sharjah, while carrier options include transhipment through Khor Fakkan followed by overland movement and intra-Gulf feeder connections. The restriction adds an operational layer to a corridor that was already accumulating cost after Hapag-Lloyd’s Middle East emergency surcharge in late June.

Hapag-Lloyd’s two August 1 increases carry different triggers

Hapag-Lloyd published two separate increases from the Indian Subcontinent and Pakistan with August 1 effective dates, and the applicable trigger differs between them in a way that matters for late-July bookings.

The first is a US$1,000 per container GRI on cargo from the Indian Subcontinent and Pakistan to the United States and Canada, all coasts. It covers 20-foot and 40-foot dry, reefer, and special containers, including high-cube equipment, and applies to containers gated in full on or after August 1 until further notice.

The second raises base ocean tariff rates from India and Pakistan to North Europe and the Mediterranean: US$2,000 per container from Nhava Sheva and Mundra and US$1,500 from Karachi and Port Qasim. The increase is identical for 20-foot and 40-foot dry containers and applies to sailings starting August 1.

From	To	Increase (20’/40′)	New base, 20′ / 40′ (USD)
Nhava Sheva / Mundra	North Europe	+US$2,000	5,253 / 4,556
Nhava Sheva / Mundra	Mediterranean	+US$2,000	5,358 / 4,696
Karachi / Port Qasim	North Europe	+US$1,500	4,593 / 4,236
Karachi / Port Qasim	Mediterranean	+US$1,500	4,548 / 4,396

Hapag-Lloyd base ocean tariff increases for dry containers on sailings from August 1, 2026. Surcharges and local or contingency charges may apply separately; source in Further Reading.

Read the triggers side by side. A North America-bound container gated in full before August 1 falls outside this specific GRI’s stated trigger, even if its vessel sails in August. For Europe- or Mediterranean-bound cargo, a late-July gate-in offers no equivalent protection because the new tariff is tied to the sailing date.

If tracking which carrier update touches which shipment means working through multiple portals and advisory emails, see how ops teams consolidate shipment and schedule visibility across 100+ carriers into one view.

HMM introduces a US$3,000 transpacific PSS for July 15

Drewry confirms that HMM is introducing a US$3,000 per 40-foot container peak season surcharge effective July 15, while The Loadstar identifies it as a transpacific surcharge.

Capacity conditions provide the context. Carriers have announced eight blank sailings on the transpacific for the coming week, compared with one on Asia–Europe, and Drewry expects rates on both trades to keep rising. Shanghai–New York already sits at US$7,902 per 40-foot container after an 11% weekly jump, with Shanghai–Los Angeles at US$6,349 after a 10% increase.

CULines opens a weekly Northeast Asia–India/Pakistan loop

CULines launches its Korea-China-India (KCI) weekly service with a first sailing from Busan on July 16, deploying the 6,700 TEU MV Racine as a joint-venture partner on the string.

The rotation runs Busan – Gwangyang – Shanghai – Ningbo – Shekou – Port Klang (West Port) – Nhava Sheva – Mundra – Karachi – Port Klang (West Port) – Busan, with onward connections advertised to the Middle East, Red Sea, and East Mediterranean through the carrier’s wider network.

For Korea- and China–Subcontinent cargo, it is a new direct option worth pricing against incumbent services. As with any newly launched loop, compare the first published proformas with actual departure and arrival performance before committing steady volume.

MSC trims the Britannia rotation

MSC has revised its Britannia service between North Europe and the Far East: Zeebrugge and Mundra drop out entirely, and the westbound Colombo call is removed.

The updated rotation runs Felixstowe – Rotterdam – Antwerp – Gdansk – Gdynia – Klaipeda – Bremerhaven – Antwerp – London Gateway – Colombo – Port Klang – Singapore – Ningbo – Shanghai – Nansha – Yantian – Cai Mep – Singapore – Felixstowe. MSC describes the change as part of ongoing Asia–Europe network adjustments; the announcement names no effective sailing.

One detail for Subcontinent planners: Mundra loses a direct call on the Britannia service in the same week it gains a call on the new KCI loop. Bookings that relied on Britannia’s Mundra call need their revised routing and transhipment plan confirmed, while westbound routings that depended on the removed Colombo call should also be rechecked.

What to re-check this week

Jeddah and Upper Gulf cargo: confirm the discharge port and inland routing on every affected booking. Hapag-Lloyd’s Jeddah carrier-haulage restriction does not apply to Dammam or Jubail, but other cross-border Upper Gulf cargo may require an alternative via Khor Fakkan, Sharjah, or Jebel Ali. Re-check release timelines against the severe delays reported at Jeddah.
Subcontinent–North America quotes: the filing applies the US$1,000 GRI to containers gated in full on or after August 1. Reprice August bookings and confirm how the increase interacts with contract rates and previously quoted cargo.
Subcontinent–Europe/Med quotes: the increase keys on sailing date, not gate-in. A late-July gate-in sailing August 1 or later is within the new tariff’s stated validity, so check which side of the trigger each booking falls.
Transpacific spot bookings: HMM’s PSS takes effect July 15 and eight blank sailings are announced for the coming week. Confirm space and monitor tight sailings for rollover risk.
Korea/China–India/Pakistan routings: pull the KCI proforma and compare its transit times and connections with incumbent services ahead of the July 16 first sailing.
North Europe–Far East on Britannia: re-pull schedules for Zeebrugge, Mundra, and westbound Colombo pairs, and confirm the replacement routing for bookings that depended on the removed calls.

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