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Agriculture traders rushed to adjust positions with the escalating conflict in Iran threatening to disrupt supply chains from corn and soybean meal to fertilizer and sugar.

Some carriers are canceling bookings temporarily, skipping some port calls, warning of delays and implementing surcharges to transport containers through the conflict zone. 

An appeals court rejected the Trump administration’s request to delay next steps in the fight over tariff refunds for importers after the Supreme Court struck down Trump's signature policy.

“It’s the rockets and feathers effect,” said Christopher Knittel, professor of energy economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “When things are going up — they go up fast.”

Soy rose to its highest level in more than two years after strikes by the U.S. and Israel on Iran. Contracts in Chicago surged as much as 3.9% before paring some gains.

The Institute for Supply Management’s gauge of prices paid for manufacturing inputs jumped 11.5 points to 70.5, the highest level since overall inflation peaked nearly four years ago.

“One of the things in this industry is that there’s always uncertainties,” Krista Swanson, chief economist at the National Corn Growers Association, said in an interview.

The most immediate impact from the escalating Middle East conflict is through market reaction as investors take flight to safe havens such as the dollar and gold, while stocks slump.

Runaway freight is one of the most tangible market responses to a conflict that began on Feb. 28 and culminated with the vital Strait of Hormuz choke point all-but closing to tanker traffic.

Thousands of companies are angling for refunds on President Donald Trump’s tariffs, many of which were ruled unconstitutional Feb. 20. Now some retail customers are joining the scrum.