The Maersk Sentosa container ship heads south to exit the Suez Canal in Suez, Egypt, on Thursday, December 21, 2023.
Stringers | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Danish shipping giant Maersk said on Friday it would extend the diversion of ships from the Red Sea for the “foreseeable future” due to security concerns amid a spate of attacks by Houthi militants.
“The situation is constantly evolving and remains extremely volatile, and all available information confirms that the safety risk remains at a significantly elevated level,” Maersk said in a statement.
It added that it hoped to offer customers “more consistency and predictability” despite delays in deliveries.
The diversion means avoiding the quickest route between Europe and Asia through Egypt's Suez Canal and taking the longer route to the Cape of Good Hope around southern Africa.
Several European companies, including Sweden's Ikea, British retailer Next and home appliance maker Electrolux, have warned of delays to some products due to supply chain disruptions.
Maersk had resumed sailings through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden after a break in December, but suspended them again on Tuesday after one of its ships was attacked.
Maersk's European-listed shares were trading 0.2% higher at midday London time (7 a.m. ET), defying a broader market selloff. It was among Europe's top performers of the new year this week, up more than 16%.
Investors expect the company, like its rivals, to benefit from reduced capacity in the market as ships take longer voyages, which has already led to higher ocean freight rates.
The German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd has also announced that it will continue to divert ships from the Red Sea in view of the Houthi attacks.
“What we can say at the moment [is] “We do not view transit through the Red Sea and Suez Canal as safe,” Nils Haupt, head of corporate communications at Hapag-Lloyd, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Friday.
“We had an attack in December, you cannot imagine how hard that was, not only for us as a company but especially for our crew. There have been several attacks in recent days and during the passage through the Red Sea. “The Suez Canal is not safe, we will not pass,” he added.