Container Traffic in Red Sea Fell 30%
In the first half of January 2024, transit through the Suez Canal, which connects the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, decreased by 37 percent
The world’s shipping companies are taking stock of the Houthi attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea. Over the past 12 months, sea container traffic across the Red Sea has fallen by almost 30%. According to a study by the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) PortWatch platform, this is the result of attacks by the Shiite Houthi movement, which has been launching missiles at merchant ships off the coast of Yemen despite the presence of a US-led naval coalition. “Most Red Sea traffic consists of containerized traffic, which has declined by almost 30 percent,” said IMF Regional Director for the Middle East and Central Asia Jihad Azour, adding that “the decline in commercial traffic accelerated in early 2024.”
Traffic through the Suez Canal, one of Egypt’s main sources of revenue, is declining as well. Again, according to PortWatch, “between January 1 and January 16, 2024, transit volume through the Suez Canal, which connects the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, fell 37% year-on-year.”
A Pentagon spokesman said that since November 19, the Houthi rebels, who control large swaths of Yemen, “have launched more than 35 attacks on shipping in both the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.” The Houthis attributed the attacks to the desire to prevent ships linked to Israel, Britain, and the United States from sailing off the coast of Yemen “in solidarity” with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which is in the agony of war between Israel and Hamas.
Missile attacks by the Houthis have disrupted maritime traffic at this crucial hub, through which up to 12% of all world trade passes. The attacks have forced many shipowners to change traditional routes: to avoid the dangerous stretch, ships traveling from Asia to European ports must bypass Africa, which involves much higher transportation costs and much longer transit times. “The level of uncertainty is extremely high, and the situation development will determine the extent to which business models are changed and modified in terms of volume, as well as sustainability,” Azour summarized during the press conference.