(Updates with details on travel, airlines, food and banks)

March 12 (Reuters) - The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is

rattling businesses worldwide, driving up energy prices,

squeezing supplies of critical raw materials and raising

questions about the reliability of trade routes critical to the

flow of goods from food to car parts.

Below are the main disruptions so far:

TRAVEL CHAOS

The war has led to tens of thousands of flight

cancellations, reroutings and schedule changes worldwide,

shutting much of ​the Middle East's airspace, including Qatar's,

due to missile and drone threats.

The fallout has hurled global aviation into its worst crisis

since the pandemic, crippling operations at Dubai International

Airport (DXB), the busiest hub for global passengers, straining

other regional hubs that are critical transit points for

long-haul travel.

Private jets have emerged as an alternative for marooned

travellers to get out of the Gulf, whilst others have embarked

on long taxi drives across the desert to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,

in the hope of flying home from there.

The conflict has also disrupted a key oil ​export corridor,

igniting a surge in jet fuel prices that is driving up fares on

several routes and stoking fears of a broader collapse in travel

demand.

Time-sensitive air cargo was also heavily affected. Shipments

ranging from fresh produce to airplane parts are in limbo as the

Middle East conflict squeezes cargo capacity and pushes up

freight rates.

AIRLINES

The shutdown of Gulf airspace rippled quickly across airline

networks and battered the industry's shares.

Prices of flights between Asia and Europe have soared, some

airlines including Wizz Air ( WZZAF ) and Lufthansa

have changed routes, and Ryanair has seen a jump in

demand for short-haul flights.

Prices of jet fuel, the second-largest expense for carriers

after labour, have doubled since the start of the conflict,

adding pressure on carriers.

Even airlines that use hedging contracts to protect ‌against

sudden spikes in oil prices are rapidly announcing fare hikes,

fuel surcharges and capacity cuts as they grapple with an

unprecedented jump in refining margins.

For pilots, the Iran war is making the skies even more

perilous, ratcheting up pressure on those flying through them

due to drone incursions.

Airspace restrictions in the Middle East amid the Iran war

have dealt another blow to Indian airlines, which count the

region as ​a crucial corridor for flights to Europe and the U.S.

since Pakistan banned Indian carriers from its airspace last

year.

IMPACT ON DUBAI

The conflict has put at risk the Middle East's carefully

constructed image as a safe and high-end vacation hot spot after

billions of investment in recent years from Abu Dhabi to Dubai.

Tourism is worth some $367 billion annually to the region.

It has also laid bare how heavily global air travel relies

on a handful of hubs led by Dubai, the world's busiest

international airport.

In Dubai and other major Middle Eastern shopping hubs, many

stores were closed or operating with a skeleton staff last week.

DEFENSE INDUSTRY

The United States has unleashed an array of weaponry against

Iranian targets, including Tomahawk cruise missiles, stealth

fighters, and for the first time in combat, low-cost one-way

attack drones modeled after Iranian designs.

The Pentagon also used artificial intelligence services from

Anthropic, including its Claude tools, during its attack.

Last week, the Pentagon designated the AI lab a

"supply-chain risk," barring government contractors from using

its technology in work for the U.S. military. That followed a

months-long dispute over the company's insistence on safeguards

that the Defense Department says went too far.

U.S. President Donald Trump met executives from seven

defense contractors on March 6, as the Pentagon works to

replenish supplies drawn down by U.S. strikes on Iran and other

recent military operations.

CRITICAL METALS AND RAW MATERIALS

Qatari smelter Qatalum began shutting down operations last

week, while Aluminium Bahrain said it had halted shipments and

declared force majeure because it could not move metal through

the Strait of Hormuz. The Gulf region accounts for about 8% of

global aluminium supply.

Aluminium prices on the London Metal Exchange jumped

sharply on the news, while physical premiums in Europe and the

United States climbed to multi-year highs.

Nickel makers in Indonesia reliant on the Middle East for

75% of the sulphur they use may have to cut production as Gulf

shipping is increasingly disrupted by the conflict.

FOOD, FAST FASHION AND LUXURY

Some shipments of garments for major clothing retailers were

stranded at airports in Bangladesh and India as the conflict

impacted flights, Reuters reported last week.

South Asia is a clothes manufacturing powerhouse and fast

fashion brands around the world rely on factories in Bangladesh,

India and Pakistan for a constant stream of new T-shirts,

dresses and jeans.

The crisis is also adding pressure on the luxury sector,

which was already struggling to emerge from a slowdown in

demand, with groups such as Richemont and Zegna

seen among the most exposed.

Restaurants and hotels across India warned of disruptions

​and possible shutdowns as the Iran war constricts the supply of

cooking gas, prompting authorities to set up ‌a panel to review

industry requests.

India's packaged water market is also seeing some

manufacturers hike prices for distributors, as supply

disruptions linked to the war impact everything from plastic

bottles to caps, labels and cardboard boxes.

Rising oil prices have increased the cost of polymer, which

is made from crude oil and is a key material in manufacturing

plastic bottles.

CHIPS AND DATA CENTRES

South Korean officials have warned that a prolonged conflict

could disrupt supplies of key semiconductor manufacturing

materials sourced from the Middle East, including helium, which

is essential for chip production and has no viable substitute.

Drone strikes that damaged some of Amazon's ( AMZN ) data

centres in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain raised questions

about technology supply chains and Big Tech's pace of expansion

in the region.

BANKS

Citigroup and Standard Chartered have told Dubai staff to

work from home, ​Reuters has reported ⁠citing sources, as banks

respond to Iranian threats against Gulf banking interests tied

to the U.S. and Israel.

HSBC has closed all branches in Qatar until further notice,

according to a customer notice, saying the measure was to

​ensure the safety of staff and customers.

(Reporting by Reuters buros;

Compiled by Josephine Mason

Editing by Bernadette Baum and Shinjini Ganguli)