by Shipping giant Maersk said Wednesday that, after avoiding the Red Sea and Suez Canal for about a week due to attacks on shipping, it was once again directing its ships through the canal.
The Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen has been attacking ships in the Red Sea, saying they are retaliating against Israel’s military actions against Hamas in Gaza. A US-led naval force It has gathered to defend ships in the Red Sea and warships already there have prevented attacks on ships.
TO shipping notice The report Maersk released on Wednesday showed that several of its vessels were heading to the Suez Canal, which handles about 12 percent of global trade.
“We continue to prepare our ships for passage through the Red Sea, and any deviation from this decision will be analyzed on a case-by-case basis,” Maersk said in a statement.
The attacks near the Suez Canal have been disrupting global shipping at a time when fewer ships can pass through the Panama Canal due to a drought. After the Houthi attacks, shipping rates soared and shipping companies, trying to avoid the Red Sea, diverted their ships around the Cape of Good Hope, increasing costs and causing delays.
Hapag-Lloyd, a large German shipping company, was still avoiding the Red Sea, its spokesman said Wednesday. MSC, a Swiss-based shipping company, said one of its ships had been attacked on Tuesday but that no injuries had been reported.
“Our first priority remains protecting the lives and safety of our seafarers, and until their safety can be ensured, MSC will continue to divert vessels booked to transit Suez via the Cape of Good Hope,” the company said. . said in a press release.
Many carriers, including Evergreen, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC and Maersk, had rerouted ships around Africa, imposing container surcharges on some shipments to cover the extra cost.
Shipping Tracking Websites They show many ships now sailing the Red Sea, including oil tankers.
More than 400 cargo ships have been sent on the 6,000-nautical-mile diversion, effectively reducing trade capacity between Asia and Europe by 25 percent, UBS analysts said.
Brooks Barnes contributed reports.
