Given the repetition of attacks on ships transiting the Sea and in the Gulf of Aden by the Houthi militiamen, who are in since the end of 2023, maritime traffic in the Suez Canal continues to be almost halved compared to a year ago ago. Last July, the canal was crossed a total of 1,047 ships, with a decrease of -51.5% on July 2023, of which 409 tankers (-43.7%) and 638 other vessels (-55,4%). The total SCNT net tonnage of ships transiting at July 2024 amounted to 42.0 million tonnes (-68.8%) and transit fees paid by ships amounted to 15.3 billion Egyptian pounds ($316 million), with a down by -45.2% on July 2023.

In the first seven months of this year, the Egyptian channel was crossed by 7,922 ships, with a reduction of -48.3% on the corresponding period of 2023, of which 2,930 tankers (-41.7%) and 4,992 units of other types (-51.5%). Tonnage total net of ships transited was 438.1 million tonnes (-57.7%) and revenues from Transit charges amounted to £124.1 billion Egyptian (-38.4%).

The strongly negative trend of transits in the Suez Canal is continued last month and in September, with unofficial data that indicate a volume of ship traffic in the period that was halved compared to to a year ago.

Meanwhile, the Danish research and analysis company Sea-Intelligence has assessed the impact of the crisis in the Red Sea on the landings of container ships in the near near ports to the region. The company found that if the total number of monthly calls at deep-water ports in the Eastern Mediterranean was already declining before the crisis, the month-on-month decline equal to -22% recorded in January 2024 in the region's ports is was quite significant. Compared to the pre-crisis average - observed Sea-Intelligence - in the first half of 2024 the decrease in ports in the eastern Mediterranean has been -33%. A similar reduction in average monthly stopovers is has also been recorded in the ports of the Gulf of Aden, which have been going down from about 100 monthly stopovers at 60-70 in 2024. As is happening in the East Med - however, the Danish company specified - the airports in the region are recovering, although very slowly.

In addition, Sea-Intelligence specified that the ports of the Sea Red are the ones who, of course, accused the major impact of the crisis, with a drop of -85% in the average number of stopovers in deep-water ports registered in 2024: the number is dropped from over 200 stopovers per month to less than 40 between January and June 2024. The figure rose to 60 stopovers in July 2024, twice as many compared to previous months, although it is not yet clear - specified the company - if the recovery continues or if it is a temporary increase.

Sea-Intelligence has announced that the most affected ports in the Red Sea were Jeddah and King Abdullah Port. Shipping companies have cancelled the calls of their ocean services at the second port in since last January, while Jeddah has recorded the decline more pronounced, equal to -74% month-on-month, between December 2023 and January 2024. Even after a slight improvement recorded the Last July, the port of Jeddah averaged just 37 calls per day month compared to the pre-crisis average of 135 monthly stopovers.

In the eastern Mediterranean, Piraeus and Port Said were the ports most affected, while in the Gulf of Aden the port of Salalah saw airports drop by almost -50% between January and February 2024.

Sea-Intelligence has also announced that, in terms of reliability of the scheduling of departures from ports, the ports of call in the Red Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean are returned to pre-crisis levels, while those in the Gulf of Aden have returned to still late. An improvement was also recorded in all three regions of the average delay in ship arrivals in ports that, after a sharp increase to 10-14 days in January 2024, it has fallen back to pre-crisis levels by 4-5 days.