REGIONAL REPORT | MIDDLE EAST
A GLOBAL IMPACT
Conflicts in Iran and Yemen are having a global impact on shipping. However, there is still business to be won across North Africa, the Gulf and Turkey.
A
re ongoing geopolitical issues in the Middle East starting to impact sales of lifting and material handling
equipment in this region? As is often the case in our industry, the answer to that question is nuanced.
Conflict impact
Because of the long lead time for port cranes, this segment of the market is not as reactive to external shocks as other areas of lifting equipment. This is evident in Konecranes’ latest quarterly financial results, released on 23 October. It shows that the three months of July to September was relatively healthy. Net sales in its port solutions business actually increased, along with a bump of 1% in its profit margin. However, the order book decreased in this business unit, while it increased in Konecranes’ Industrial Service and Industrial Equipment divisions. This perhaps demonstrates a softening in demand; however, only time will tell.
Taking a broader view, Konecranes reported
that order intake decreased in its port solutions business in the nine months from January to September. This is against a backdrop of increased orders in its industrial service and industrial equipment divisions. Overall, net sales for the period remained stable in port solutions, which also maintained its profit margin for the period at 11%. The dip in orders perhaps represents terminal
operators pressing the pause button on projects as the Iran conflict continues. However, the numbers also demonstrate a duality in shipping that impacts this space: despite increased shipping costs and greater risk in certain shipping lanes, container movements remain high. Konecranes captures this contradiction
in its latest financial statement: “For our port customers, container throughput continues to be on a high level, and the long-term prospects for container handling remain good,” it says. “However, uncertainty related to geopolitics and trade policy tensions remains high.”
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www.hoistmagazine.com
Cautious optimism The meta perspective further underlines this viewpoint of cautious optimism – container throughput remains strong, but uncertainty is clouding the picture. The Drewry Port Equity Index shows that global port throughput growth slowed in the second quarter of 2026 amid what it calls “Middle East disruptions”. However, aggregate shipping revenue and EBITDA rose year-on-year. Because of this, the Drewry Port Equity Index has outperformed the S&P 500 so far in 2026, despite weakening throughput momentum. Maritime consultancy Drewry developed
this index to track and analyse the stock market performance and financial health of publicly listed port and terminal operators. It tracks around 10 major global and regional TOs, aiming to provide a sector-specific view of how port-related equities are performing compared to broader equity benchmarks, such as the S&P 500. Movements in the index are typically driven by factors such as global trade volumes,
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