Egypt is estimated to be losing about $16 million per day in revenue as the Suez Canal Authority has been unable to collect fees from vessels passing through the waterway, according to financial data company Refinitiv.
Ever Given, the 200,000 tonne ship carrying 20,000 containers, was partially refloated on Monday after high winds blew it off course on March 23, blocking a vital waterway for global trade. It is expected to take some time to clear a backlog of more than 400 vessels at either end of the waterway.
“Without transits for the past six days, the loss in revenue for the Suez Canal Authority and Egypt are in excess of $95m,” Ranjith Raja, head of Mena oil and shipping research at Refinitiv, said.
“Despite this morning’s great news on re-floating, the canal is still not passable and so this figure will inevitably grow. If the SCA is considering discounts for vessels affected by the blockage [this] will result in a further loss of revenue.”
A total of 369 ships are currently stranded on either side of the water channel, carrying a deadweight tonnage of 25 million – an 85 per cent increase on the amount that was stuck last Thursday. A further 85 ships are en route to join the jam before Wednesday, Refinitiv said.
Although the authority has managed to transit 100 ships in a single day, there are limitations related to the size of ships transiting and tidal factors on a given day.
“Considering container ships account for the majority of vessels waiting for transit, they are expected to cause a shock to the supply chain, specifically for the manufacturing and automobile sector which usually operate on the 'just-in-time' principle," Mr Raja said.
"This isolated incident is expected to have subsequent cost implications and delays" to consumer goods deliveries in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, he added.
Ships can take an alternate route around the Cape of Good Hope, but this can take an extra 10 days and add up to $400,000 in fuel costs alone for a large container vessel or a super tanker, the report said.
The current blockage is unlikely to have a significant impact on oil markets, as only 10 per cent of global oil trade passes through the canal, oil demand remains relatively weak and there are ample reserves both in Asia and the West, Refinitiv's report said.
There are also other ways to move crude, such as the Sumed pipeline (Arab Petroleum Pipelines Company) and the longer transit route around the Cape of Good Hope. The total capacity of the pipeline is 2.8 million bpd but it is operating well below that capacity at 1.33 million bpd.
The pipeline is majority-owned by Egypt's state oil company EGPC, while Saudi Aramco, Mubadala, Kuwait Investment Authority and Qatar Petroleum have smaller shares.
The suspension of traffic through Suez has temporarily raised freight rates across many routes at a time when shipping capacity is already tight. Rates from Rotterdam to Singapore, for example, increased by 25 per cent over a three-day period to $25 per metric tonne by March 26, according to Refinitv data.
A total of 18,597 ships transited the Suez Canal in 2020, or 1,550 ships per month.
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Abu Dhabi traffic facts
Drivers in Abu Dhabi spend 10 per cent longer in congested conditions than they would on a free-flowing road
The highest volume of traffic on the roads is found between 7am and 8am on a Sunday.
Travelling before 7am on a Sunday could save up to four hours per year on a 30-minute commute.
The day was the least congestion in Abu Dhabi in 2019 was Tuesday, August 13.
The highest levels of traffic were found on Sunday, November 10.
Drivers in Abu Dhabi lost 41 hours spent in traffic jams in rush hour during 2019
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Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
Other IPL batting records
Most sixes: 292 – Chris Gayle
Most fours: 491 – Gautam Gambhir
Highest individual score: 175 not out – Chris Gayle (for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in 2013)
Highest strike-rate: 177.29 – Andre Russell
Highest strike-rate in an innings: 422.22 – Chris Morris (for Delhi Daredevils against Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017)
Highest average: 52.16 – Vijay Shankar
Most centuries: 6 – Chris Gayle
Most fifties: 36 – Gautam Gambhir
Fastest hundred (balls faced): 30 – Chris Gayle (for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in 2013)
Fastest fifty (balls faced): 14 – Lokesh Rahul (for Kings XI Punjab against Delhi Daredevils in 2018)
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