You are using an outdated browser For a better experience using this site, please upgrade to a modern web browser. Subscribe Get Daily Email Subscribe --> Contact Us Sign in Home News & Features Compliance Costs Bunker Prices Bunker Intelligence World News Latest Features World Americas EMEA Asia/Pacific Home News & Features World Iran Conflict Drives New Container Capacity onto Far East-Europe Trade Iran Conflict Drives New Container Capacity onto Far East-Europe Trade by Ship & Bunker News Team Wednesday June 3, 2026 Tweet Follow @shipandbunker Alphaliner says 25% of the global container fleet is operating on Far East-Europe trade route. File Image / Pixabay The ongoing Iran war is reshaping global container shipping patterns, with carriers deploying a growing share of new vessel capacity on the Far East-Europe trade, according to sector specialist Alphaliner . Capacity deployed on services serving the Middle East and Indian Subcontinent fell 7.6% year-on-year as vessels trapped in the Arab Gulf were excluded from active trade calculations, it said in an emailed report on Tuesday . Alphaliner added these ships were instead included in its "repair/idle/others" category, contributing to a 56% increase in that segment. Meanwhile, the global container fleet expanded by 5.7% year-on-year to 33.9 million TEU between May 2025 and May 2026 . Of the 1.84 million TEU of capacity added to the global container fleet through new container ship deliveries during the period, 667,400 TEU was deployed on the Far East-Europe trade, accounting for 36% of the additional capacity. “ A very large part of the new capacity was absorbed by the Far East–Europe trade Alphaliner said capacity on the Far East-Europ e route increased 8.5% year-on-year as carriers continued to operate services around the Cape of Good Hope instead of using the Red Sea . The trade now accounts for 25% of the global container fleet, up from 20.8% three years ago. Africa-related services recorded the st