These Choke Points Pose Global Shipping’s Biggest Risks

Whether it’s tennis shoes or automobiles, most goods produced on one side the planet and bought on the other travel on a ship, usually without anyone noticing. That changed during the pandemic as Covid lockdowns and border closures caused international supply chains to seize up, sparking shortages and a painful bout of inflation.

The coronavirus has been more or less corralled, but the risks that a seaborne trade route might suddenly be severed haven’t gone away. In some ways, they’ve gotten worse. Wars in Ukraine and Gaza, China’s geo-economic standoff with the US, climate change wreaking havoc on ports and waterways — all have potential to sow disruption in maritime shipping.