Gulf conflict upsets networks – and fleet size – of biggest feeder operators

The US-Iran conflict and subsequent closure of the Hormuz Straits have upended the networks, and fleet deployment strategies, of the world’s three largest common feeder operators – and seen AD Ports’ Global Feeder Services significantly close the gap on the market leaders.

According to new analysis from Alphaliner, the Middle East conflict, now in its eighth month, has forced the two largest operators, X-Press Feeders and DP Worldm to reduce their offered capacity as the closure of Gulf routes curtailed their networks.

“X-Press Feeders remains the world’s largest feeder operator by deployed capacity, although its fleet has contracted by 7.1% year on year, as per Alphaliner’s survey on 21 September,” the analyst writes this week.

“Fallout from the Middle East conflict forced X-Press to make service cuts across the region, which is the main reason for the decline.”

As a result, X-Press Feeders’ global capacity is now 182,776 teu, down 13,987 teu from September 2025, with its capacity serving the Middle East region down 34.2% – equivalent to 38,000 teu – which Alphaliner linked to service suspension in the wake of the conflict.

To offset this, it has increased capacity in the intra-Europe trades by 7.4%, and intra-Americas by 17.7%, and has even taken the unusual step, for a feeder operator, of joining a deepsea Asia-Europe service, via the deployment of the 4,800 teu X-Press Odyssey on the China-Mediterranean CEX service, jointly run with China United Lines, Uniglory, and Global Feeder Services.

Meanwhile, DP World’s global capacity, largely made up of the Unifeeder fleet, fell 2.5% during the year, a “modest overall decline, also driven by the Middle East conflict”, said Alphaliner.

It added: “Its deployed capacity in the ME/ISC related trade fell by 7,500 teu, while its operated capacity in all other regions remained broadly stable year on year.

“Most of the cuts came from Gulf-related loops,” Alphaliner wrote, noting it had largely redeployed capacity to the Asia-India trade, as well as to a number of extra loaders serving the ME/ISC trade.

However, Emirati compatriot Global Feeder Services (GFS), owned by AD Ports, in what appears to be a commercial strategy that closely resembles that of DP World, saw its capacity jump by 31%, and its fleet is now only a fraction behind that of its rival – just 2,800 teu smaller – after it doubled-down on serving the India-Middle East trade corridor.

“The ME/ISC trade remains GFS’s core market and accounted for the bulk of its growth, in contrast to X-Press Feeders and DP World, which both reduced their presence there,” said Alphaliner, calculating that GFS’s capacity on that trade grew 26.9% and now accounts for around 70% of its total fleet.

“While its two main competitors scaled back in the region, GFS kept its network largely intact. The carrier replaced Gulf calls on existing loops with Red Sea ports, and extended its reach into neighbouring trades.

“As a result, GFS has overtaken both rivals to become the largest of the three in the ME/ISC trade, ahead of X-Press Feeders (about 73,500 teu) and DP World (about 70,500 teu),” the analyst added.