The volume of cargo transported through the Suez Canal in the first week of 2024 decreased by 35.2%

The volume of cargo transported through the Suez Canal in the first week of 2024 decreased by 35.2% compared to the same period in 2023, according to the latest figures from the International Monetary Fund. This equates to a drop from an average of 4.7 million tons per day in the first week of 2023 to 3.0 million tons this year. Simultaneously, the volume passing through the Cape of Good Hope from January 1 to 7, 2024, increased by 59.7% year-on-year, growing from an average daily volume of 4.0 million tons to 6.8 million tons.

This shift is attributed to the attacks by Houthi rebels against merchant ships, which began on November 19, following a threat issued five days earlier against all ships with Israeli interests sailing towards the Suez Canal. On December 7, the Houthis expanded their threat to any ship stopping at Israeli ports. As a result, several major container line operators and some liquefied natural gas carriers decided to reroute their traffic from the Red Sea and the Suez Canal to the Cape of Good Hope route.

The data shows a significant decrease in maritime traffic in the Red Sea towards the Suez Canal starting from December 16 last year. A day earlier, British and American naval vessels in the region announced they had shot down 15 Houthi drones before they reached their targets.

On January 9, representatives from Operation Prosperity Guardian, a multinational force established by the United States to protect navigation in the Red Sea, reported intercepting “several drones and ballistic missiles launched from Yemeni territory” in what they described as “the largest attack to date.”