The cost of shipping goods to Iran, based on estimates by business actors, has increased between 4 and 7 times, depending on the type of goods and route. The stated reason for this jump is the tightening of maritime restrictions, the forced change of commercial routes, and a lack of capacity in alternative corridors.

Ali Imami, the director-general of the Office of Supply and Support at Iran’s Trade Development Organization, told the Donyaye Eqtesad newspaper that a container that previously came from China at about $3,000 now costs about $12,000 via the road route and about $9,500 via the rail route.

Majtaba Baharvand, a logistics industry activist, said that overland transport via Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan is at least six to seven times more expensive than sea freight, and that the port of Karachi and routes leading to Iran face poor road infrastructure and security issues.

Khurshid Gazderazi, president of the Bushehr Chamber of Commerce, said that Oman was unable to replace the United Arab Emirates, and that shipping costs rose up to 600 percent in some cases. According to him, exports and imports through the UAE and Qatar have improved over the past month, but shipping costs still remain between 2 and 2.5 times higher than normal conditions.