The coming months will be challenging for carriers and businesses, as disruptions to container shipping via the Red Sea continue into the third quarter, Danish shipping company Maersk said on Monday.
Maersk and other shipping companies have diverted vessels around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope since December to avoid attacks by Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, with the longer voyage times pushing freight rates higher.
“The longer that this lasts, the more our costs will get deeply ingrained,” Maersk said in a statement, citing comments made by CEO Vincent Clerc at “a recent online event with customers.”
“We don’t know yet exactly how much of these costs we will recover and for how long. The higher rates we are seeing right now are of a temporary nature,” Clerc said.
Maersk expects to have missing positions or ships that differ in size from what the company would normally have on a given string, it said, adding that this would reduce the company’s ability to carry the current demand.
Meanwhile , U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) reported in its latest update that its forces conducted a self-defense engagement, destroying three Iranian-backed Houthi rebels uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) in the Red Sea.
CENTCOM added , It was determined the USVs presented an imminent threat to U.S. and coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region, and described its actions as taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure.
CENTCOM update concluded “This continued malign and reckless behavior by the Iranian-backed Houthis threatens regional stability and endangers the lives of mariners across the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.