More ships to avoid Red Sea as attacks disrupt world trade

(Reuters) — Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd and Hong Kong’s OOCL said Thursday they would avoid the Red Sea, the latest shipping companies to do so after attacks by Yemen’s Houthi group on vessels disrupted global trade, prompting the establishment of a naval task force.

Hapag-Lloyd said it would reroute 25 ships by the end of the year from the key waterway as freight rates and shipping stocks have increased because of the disruption. Avoiding the Red Sea and Suez Canal means following a far longer route around Africa.

The Iran-aligned Houthis, who control much of Yemen, have been attacking ships passing through the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea for weeks in what they say is a response to Israel’s war in Gaza.

Traders are meanwhile scrambling to find alternative shipping routes or other options including air flights to get consumer goods to retailers, with journeys around Africa adding roughly 10 days extra to voyage times.

“Up to this moment, we have guided OOCL-operated vessels to either divert route or suspend sailing to Red Sea,” container group OOCL told Reuters in a statement Thursday, the first time it had confirmed pausing sailings.

“We will continue to assess the feasibility of various options and will take appropriate countermeasures according to different conditions,” OOCL said.

Analysts have said the delays could start causing some shops to run low on stocks by February, though after the COVID-19 pandemic more companies have sought resilience in supply chains by buying from exporters in different regions.