For fashion supply chains that rely on the port as a staging point for cargo moving between South Asia, Europe, and the United States, the implications are immediate.
Records show Old Navy and Gap as the dominant US importers through the Pakistan-Salalah corridor — Old Navy alone accounts for more than 2,300 recorded shipments — with Levi’s, Walmart, and Banana Republic also significantly exposed.
Traffic through the region has already thinned dramatically. According to Everstream Analytics, daily vessel calls at key Gulf hubs including Bandar Abbas (Iran), Jebel Ali (UAE), and Salalah (Oman) have fallen by more than 50% since early March, as carriers adopt a wait-and-see approach or divert cargo to alternate ports.
Risk exposure is driven less by company size than by sourcing geography — and the compounding effect is acute, notes Steve Lamar, CEO of the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA).
“Apparel, footwear, and travel goods are low-margin products, meaning increases in transportation costs can significantly impact companies’ bottom lines,” he says, “especially as the industry is already managing new Section 122 tariffs while still awaiting refunds from the illegally collected IEEPA tariffs.”
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Myanmar introduces a further layer of complexity: junta-imposed fuel restrictions are disrupting upstream production for brands still heavily reliant on the country’s garment zones. Adidas emerges as the largest named US importer from Myanmar ports, per ImportGenius data, ahead of H&M, L.L.Bean, and Cutter & Buck — all of whom had shipments moving through Yangon, the country’s largest city, in early March. “If the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, it’s very possible we’ll see production cuts there as well,” says ImportGenius lead analyst Lynn Hughes.
The geography of risk
In addition to the physical threat to vessels, electronic interference is compounding disruption. Mirko Woitzik, head of product, supply chain risk management at Everstream Analytics, says widespread GPS and Automatic Identification System (AIS) interference has been detected across the Arabian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting vessel navigation and traffic management.
The Red Sea, blocked by Houthi attacks since late 2023, had already forced vessels onto the longer Cape of Good Hope reroute. But the disruption is not hitting fashion uniformly — and the asymmetry matters.
The Trans-Pacific, Asia-to-North America passage, has been largely unaffected beyond fuel surcharges. The real pain is concentrated on two vectors: Asia-to-Europe air freight, and any cargo moving into the Gulf states themselves.
The Red Sea approach to the Suez Canal has effectively been closed to commercial shipping since 2023, when Houthi attacks forced vessels onto the longer Cape of Good Hope reroute. Most European-bound ocean cargo was already absorbing that detour before the Hormuz closure — so in that sense, the latest strait disruption has not lengthened those journeys further, says Sanne Manders, president of Flexport. Ships are simply continuing the Cape reroute, cutting out the Gulf rather than adding to it.
The disruption extends beyond ocean lanes. Emirates and Qatar Airways collectively rank among the five largest air freight carriers globally, and handle a disproportionate share of Asia-Europe belly cargo, given how landing rights concentrate traffic throughout Gulf hubs. Both suspended or severely curtailed operations following the February 28 strikes. “The capacity is very limited,” says Manders.