People sit on a dock as the Hong Kong-flagged vessel Sea Horse, carrying some 200,000 barrels of Russia-origin fuel originally bound for Cuba, is anchored near the coast after arriving in Venezuelan waters, in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela March 28, 2026. REUTERS\/Juan Carlos Hernandez<\/p>\n
Shippers Hapag-Lloyd, CMA CGM Suspend Cuba Bookings After US Executive Order<\/p>\n
By Gus Trompiz, Christoph Steitz and Dave Sherwood<\/p>\n
PARIS\/FRANKFURT\/HAVANA, May 17 (Reuters)\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Shipping\u00a0giants<\/p>\n
HLAG.DE\u00a0said on Sunday they had\u00a0suspended all bookings to and from Cuba until further notice,\u00a0with both citing\u00a0a U.S. executive order issued on May 1,\u00a0in the latest blow to the crisis-wracked island\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n
The temporary suspension of new orders by two of the world\u2019s largest\u00a0shipping\u00a0companies could jeopardize as much as 60% of Cuba\u2019s\u00a0shipping\u00a0traffic by volume, two sources with direct knowledge of the situation said \u2013 a fresh hit to a country already nearing collapse amid a<\/p>\n
that has throttled the island\u2019s fuel supply.<\/p>\n
\u201cFollowing the U.S. Executive Order issued on May 1, CMA CGM has decided to suspend its bookings to or from Cuba until further notice,\u201d the Frenchcompany said\u00a0in an emailed statement. It added it was \u201cclosely monitoring the situation\u201d and would adapt its operations in compliance with applicable regulations.<\/p>\n
A\u00a0Hapag-Lloyd spokesman said the German company was similarly suspending Cuban orders \u201cdue to compliance risks associated with the U.S. president\u2019s executive order of May 1.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Cuban government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n
executive order on May 1\u00a0broadened existing U.S. sanctions on commerce with Cuba to include \u201cany foreign person\u201d operating in the \u201cenergy, defense and related materiel, metals and ?mining, financial services, or security sector of the Cuban economy, or any other sector of the Cuban economy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shipping\u00a0of goods from China would be most impacted, the sources said. Northern Europe and the Mediterranean would also be severely impacted, the sources added, though all global\u00a0shipping\u00a0to Cuba would be affected.<\/p>\n
One key consideration\u00a0in the suspensions, the sources said, was rooting out any\u00a0shipping\u00a0to or from the communist-run island and linked to Gaesa, a sprawling business conglomerate tied to Cuba\u2019s military that has been heavily sanctioned by the United States.<\/p>\n
The same U.S. executive order earlier this month\u00a0prompted Canadian miner Sherritt InternationalS.TO\u00a0to pull out of its nickel and cobalt mining operations in Cuba after decades\u00a0of investment.<\/p>\n
The shippers\u2019 decision, first reported by online media outlet CiberCuba, would be devastating for Cuban imports critical to keeping shelves stocked with provisions in a country already racked by shortages and rationing.<\/p>\n
The sources said several options were on the table for Hapag-Lloyd and CMA CGM. The shippers could decide to permanently halt\u00a0shipping\u00a0to Cuba, or,\u00a0alternatively, they could strike a deal with the\u00a0administration of U.S. President Donald Trump\u00a0in which they\u00a0are\u00a0allowed to continue to ship only to Cuba\u2019s private sector.<\/p>\n
The latter option, the sources said, would keep with the Trump administration\u2019s strategy to give private business in Cuba a leg up over the state sector.<\/p>\n
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 202<\/p>\n