Danish shipping group AP Moller-Maersk said on Thursday it expects strong demand for freight transport around the world to continue in the coming months, although it does not expect to resume navigation through the Suez Canal until “well after 2025.”
Attacks on vessels in the Red Sea by Iran-aligned Houthi militants have disrupted a vital shipping route for global trade, with the prolonged rerouting of shipments, driving up freight rates and causing congestion at Asian and European ports.
“There are no signs of slowing down and it is not safe for our vessels or employees to go there… Our expectation at this point is that the situation will last until 2025,” Chief Executive Vincent Clerc told reporters.
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Maersk, seen as a barometer of global trade, said in January it was diverting all container ships from Red Sea routes to around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.
The company said on Thursday that it had seen strong demand in the third quarter, especially driven by exports from China and Southeast Asia.
Clerc said he saw no signs of a slowdown in European or North American volumes in the coming months.
