From Energy Shock to Packaging Inflation: How the Iran Conflict Is Rewiring Global Packaging Supply Chains
By: Robert Swientek
Date: May 1, 2026
The Iran war and closure of the Strait of Hormuz have triggered a systemic disruption across global energy markets, resulting in cascading cost increases throughout the packaging supply chain. Crude oil prices have surged more than 60% since February, topping over $120 per barrel at their peak.
Because packaging materials are closely tied to crude oil, natural gas, and global logistics, this crisis is driving a rapid inflationary cycle that is impacting plastics, metals (aluminum and steel), glass, paperboard, fuel, and freight shipping. For packaging converters and CPG companies, the implications are immediate and far-reaching: packaging costs are rising rapidly across nearly every material category at once.
This paper focuses on how the Iran conflict is impacting global packaging supply chains through energy markets, material production, and logistics. While other market dynamics may also influence pricing, this analysis isolates the direct and cascading effects of this geopolitical disruption.