Maersk indicated today that one of its smaller container ships, the 6700-TEU Maersk Sebarok, had completed a test transit through the Red Sea on Thursday and Friday for the first time in nearly two years since the launch of Yemeni Houthi rebel attacks on merchant shipping.
“Whilst this is a significant step forward, it does not mean that we are at a point where we are considering a wider East-West network change back to the trans-Suez corridor,” Maersk said.
The company stated that while it had no firm plans to fully reopen the route, it would take a “stepwise approach towards gradually resuming navigation” via the Suez Canal and the Red Sea. Maersk did not elaborate on its plans.
Niels Rasmussen, chief shipping analyst at ship-owner association BIMCO, projected that broader resumption of Suez Canal transits could result in a 10% drop in ship demand.
“The possibility of a return to Suez Canal routings looms large over the market outlook,” he said in a note on Thursday.
Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, CMA CGM and other carriers have rerouted vessels around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope as of December 2023 after Yemeni Houthi rebels attacked ships in the Red Sea in what they qualified as gestures of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
The fastest route linking Europe and Asia, the Suez Canal accounted for about 10% of global seaborne trade prior to the incidents.
The recent ceasefire in the Gaza conflict renewed hope of normalizing Red Sea traffic, but analysts underline the fragility of the truce. “By the end of 2026, we estimate things will start to look like they were before the Houthis attack started,” said Simon Heaney, a container industry analyst at Drewry Shipping Consultants. “The risk level has reduced, so they’re prepared to test the waters. But the Houthis aren’t particularly reliable.”
(Archive photo of Maersk Sebarok)