What is going on in the Strait of Hormuz?

To mark 2026’s Day of the Seafarer, this edition of the Lloyd’s List podcast asks what shipping has learned from the Strait of Hormuz crisis from a seafarer perspective. Perhaps most importantly, he asks experts whether crews feel empowered to exercise their right to refuse to transit if they feel unsafe, and learns more about how associations and unions are seeking to improve welfare and mental health support during crises. Joining Matt on this week’s podcast are: Helio Vicente, employment affairs director, International Chamber of Shipping Anil Devli, chief executive, Indian National Shipowners Association Captain Sundeep Sequeria, chair, seafarers’ factors workgroup, Singapore Shipping Association Peter Rouch, secretary general, The Mission to Seafarers Learn more about Lloyd's List Intelligence at https://www.lloydslistintelligence.com/

It is a seller’s market at the moment in the ship recycling sector, thanks to a shortage of tonnage. But Hitesh Vyas of the Singapore-based cash buyer Wirana says in this first of six podcasts that this could change, depending on the outcome of the situation in the Gulf.

This episode of the Lloyd’s List podcast is brough to you by Veson. Visit www.veson.com for more information Open, closed, and now open again? Optimism that traffic might return to something resembling normality fairly quickly turned to uncertainty again as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard proclaimed the Strait of Hormuz closed on Saturday. It accused the US of not following its agreement and cited Israeli strikes on Lebanon as rationale for closing the strait again. How, as a shipowner, do you begin to decide whether to transit the strait or return to the Middle East Gulf? Will you have to pay a toll? What are investors making of the uncertainty? To answer those questions, Lloyd’s List senior reporter Joshua Minchin was joined by: • Richard Meade, editor-in-chief, Lloyd’s List • Cichen Shen, Asia Pacific editor, Lloyd’s List • Tomer Raanan, maritime risk analyst, Lloyd’s List

Trusted data is essential for shipping to get the best from the AI revolution, argues Russ Hubbard, Chief Commercial Officer of Veson Nautical. In this podcast, he explains why that is the case and considers the future impact of further AI implementation on maritime companies and their personnel.

IT’S now been two years since the EU Emissions Trading System was extended to shipping. But it hasn’t always been a happy relationship. Shipowners are not necessarily keen paying extra taxes, especially the green variety. Meanwhile operators in Asia are not fond of having to create accounts in EU countries to report and pay their emissions bills, without seeing any of the revenue. On the other side, greens don’t like the ETS because the extra cost per tonne — about €70 to €80 ($81 to $93) over the past year — isn’t enough to make switching to greener fuels worthwhile. Shipping’s share of ETS credits is about sixty to eighty million a year – less than 10% of the market, so the price of those allowances is outside the industry’s control. It’s considered a good regulation for emissions on land, but a poor one for emissions at sea. But now, an opportunity for change is on the horizon. To find out what changes shipping wants, Lloyd’s List senior reporter Declan Bush spoke to World Shipping Council vice president of environment and climate, Simon Bergulf.

This episode of the Lloyd’s List podcast is brought to you by Veson. Visit www.veson.com for more information EVERY year, seafarers are held for months on end on suspicion of crimes that ultimately, there is little evidence they had anything to do with. Whether its pollution events or, as is increasingly common, suspected drug smuggling, crew are often the only potential perpetrators investigators can lay their hands on. So is there a lot the industry can do to stop this? Once seafarers do land themselves on the wrong side of the law, how can flag states intercede on their behalf? Joining Joshua on the podcast this week are: Ben Bailey, director of programme, Mission to Seafarers Kiran Khosla, principal legal director, International Chamber of Shipping Eleni Antoniadou, lawyer, Gard Leo Bolivar, country manager, Marshall Islands Registry

ATTEND any one of the multiple receptions and parties thrown in Athens this week and you would not walk away necessarily thinking anyone in shipping is remotely worried. A packed exhibition with the whole spectrum of industry stakeholders demonstrated shipping’s diversity and vibrance, but quietly, over coffees in corners, there was tangible concern. Markets are good at the moment, ask any tanker owner, but the undercurrent of caution was palpable. On this week’s episode of the podcast are: • Joshua Minchin, senior reporter, Lloyd’s List • Linton Nightingale, deputy editor, Lloyd’s List • Declan Bush, senior reporter, Lloyd’s List

This episode of the Lloyd's List Podcast is brought to you by Veson SHIPPING is resilient, and many will tell you it thrives on volatility, but the number of and frequency of crises is taking its toll. It’s also preventing the industry from having honest conversations about other, equally meaningful and perhaps even more treacherous problems coming down the track. Are we going to run out of seafarers? Do we really understand AI? Do regulators listen to shipowners and how long can we expect what some are calling the next supercycle to last? Joining Joshua on this week’s podcast from Capital Link are: Arsenio Dominguez, secretary-general, International Maritime Organization (IMO) Costas Delaportas, chief executive, Drydel Shipping Cristina Saenz de Santa Maria, chief executive maritime, DNV Andy McKeran, chief growth officer, Lloyd's Register Joshua Divin, senior vice president maritime business development, American Bureau of Shipping Polys Hajioannou, chief executive officer, Safe Bulkers Sotiris Raptis, secretary general, European Shipowners

Speak to a shipowner about bunker supply at the moment, and you’ll find a spectrum of responses. Some are remarkably calm: nothing to worry about, supply is healthy despite the still closed Strait of Hormuz. Yes you might have to pay a bit more, but that’s shipping and you can still operate effectively. Others are decidedly less optimistic. For them, the Strait of Hormuz represents a real threat to bunker supply in major hubs around the world, and spiraling pricing could make some voyages unprofitable altogether. So what’s the reality? Should you be worried about supply? Is quality suffering as a result of scarcity? And how has this latest geopolitical crisis affected how bunkering works as a sector? Joining Joshua on the podcast are: • Alexander Prokopakis, executive director, International Bunker Industry Association • Kenneth Dam, executive director, TFG • Peter Grünwaldt, head of bunkering, Hafnia • Matthew Rajendra, senior reporter, Lloyd's List Learn more about Lloyd’s List Intelligence here: https://www.lloydslistintelligence.com/

You can throw almost every outlook or prediction made for the tanker market in 2026 in the garbage, says Lloyd’s List senior reporter Greg Miller. After all, the US-Iran war and ensuing Strait of Hormuz crisis is perhaps the black swan to end all black swans for the market. More than two months later, the chokepoint remains closed: so what happens to tanker stocks now? To find out, Greg spoke to Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Robertson, who ran through the year so far for tanker stocks and offered some insight as to what might be in store if the crisis continues into late 2026.