Among the major container shipping companies, only CMA CGM has maintained operations through the Suez Canal, deploying an 11-ship service, each with a capacity of 9,000 to 11,000 TEU. These vessels are operated solely by CMA CGM along with its Ocean Alliance partners—COSCO, OOCL, and Evergreen—who participate as slot sharers.
Linerlytica, a shipping analytics firm, stated, “The escalation of the Red Sea crisis would likely have a minimal effect on the container market since only 14% of the vessels engaged in the Asia-Europe trade currently pass through the Suez Canal.” Furthermore, these ships represent just 4% of the total 7.48 million TEU active on this route.
Presently, of the 513 vessels engaged in Asia-Europe trade, only 72 continue to utilize the Suez Canal route, primarily operated by smaller shipping firms from China, Russia, Singapore, Turkey, and the UAE.
Despite increased regional tensions following drone attacks by Yemen on Tel Aviv and subsequent Israeli retaliatory strikes in Hodeidah, the pattern of container ship movement in the Red Sea remains largely unchanged.
Most major carriers on the Asia-Europe route have rerouted their vessels via the Cape of Good Hope, except for CMA CGM, which persists with its 11 vessels on the Asia-Med Phoenician Express (BEX2) service that includes a transit through the Suez/Red Sea passage. The BEX2 service calls at ports in China, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, and continues through the Suez Canal to Mediterranean ports in Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, as well as stops in Lebanon, Egypt, and the UAE.
This decrease in vessel traffic through the Suez Canal has severely impacted the revenues of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA). The SCA reported a significant $2.2 billion drop in revenue for the fiscal year ending April 2024, down from $9.4 billion the previous year. Ship transits decreased to 20,148 in 2023/2024 from 25,911 the prior year, noted SCA head Osama Rabie.
The canal is a vital source of foreign currency for Egypt, which has seen authorities striving to boost its profitability, including a notable expansion in 2015. Despite these efforts, revenues are not expected to recover soon, given the escalating conflicts in Gaza and potential spillovers into Lebanon and Yemen, as regional factions supporting the Palestinian cause grow more active.
