Shipping group CMA CGM plans land surcharge on rising fuel costs

PARIS, March 19 (Reuters) - French shipping group CMA CGM will next week introduce a fuel surcharge for land routes as rising fuel costs affect all transport modes used to carry containers, it said on Thursday.

CMA CGM, the world's third-largest container shipping line, has already announced fuel surcharges for sea transport due to a jump in fuel prices caused by the conflict in the Middle East.

"These increases are impacting not only sea transportation but also inland operations across all modes, affecting the overall cost of moving containers throughout the supply chain," CMA CGM said in a customer advisory.

The emergency fuel surcharge on land transport will apply from March 23 "within a defined geographic scope", it said, without detailing the geographical zone covered or the amounts to be charged.

Oil prices jumped on Thursday after Iran attacked energy facilities across the Middle East following Israel's strike on its South Pars gas field, marking a major escalation in the war.

In addition to mounting fuel costs, shipping firms face disruption from a near-halt to commercial traffic in the Gulf, leading groups like CMA CGM to deploy alternative land connections avoiding the Strait of Hormuz.