In May 2026, the Strait of Hormuz remained closed for several months, with an average of less than 10 ships per day and a traffic volume plummeting by over 90%. The truck fleet of Saudi National Mining Company has increased from 600 to 3500 vehicles, crossing the Arabian Desert. At the same time, the freight volume of China's Ganqimaodu Port exceeded 18 million tons from January to April, a year-on-year increase of 53.4%. The global logistics landscape is undergoing a major shift from sea freight to land bridges.

Middle Eastern truck freight rates soar to 4 times

The major shipping companies collectively abandoned crossing the strait and turned to a sea freight plus land bridge model. The freight rate for a 20 foot container on the Shanghai to Gulf route has increased from $980 to $4131, exceeding the peak during the pandemic. The truck freight from Jeddah to Jebel Ali has skyrocketed from 4000 riyals to 18000 to 21000 riyals. The container handling capacity of the Khorfakan Port in the United Arab Emirates has surged from 2000 per week to 50000.

The freight volume at ports in northern Xinjiang, China has increased by over 50%

The freight volume of Ganqimaodu Port in Inner Mongolia from January to April reached 18.391 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 53.4%, and the lifting rod inspection was completed within 30 seconds. The import and export freight volume of Mandula Port has exceeded 5 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 121%. Irkeshtam Port implements 24-hour customs clearance, and drivers sigh at the earth shattering changes. Turgat Port is planned to operate around the clock. Keywords: strategic news and information, truck transportation

Shift from efficiency priority to resilience priority

Saudi National Mining Company has promised to clear the backlog of orders by the end of May, and phosphate goods have arrived in Thailand, Argentina and other places. Analysts call this a Saudi logistical miracle. This logistics revolution from desert to grassland is not only an emergency response, but also a microcosm of the global supply chain's transition from efficiency first to resilience first.Editor/Gao Xue