Suez Canal Authority chairman Osama Rabie told shipping giant Maersk that the Red Sea was showing signs of returning to stability and urged the company to take this into account when planning sea routes, a statement from the Suez Canal Authority said.
Rabie made the comments during a meeting with Maersk’s chief executive and other senior executives, the statement said, without saying when the meeting took place.
“In planning the maritime transportation schedule for the coming period, we seek that shipping companies take into account the positive indicators observed in the Red Sea region,” Rabie was quoted as saying in the statement.
Several of the world’s major shipping companies have suspended their Red Sea routes and rerouted ships around southern Africa to avoid possible attacks by Yemen’s Houthis.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said last December that shipping disruptions had reduced Egypt’s revenues from the Suez Canal in 2024 by about $7 billion.
Last week, Maersk said it would continue to divert ships from the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea to the southern tip of Africa, despite the Houthis’ announcement that they would reduce attacks on ships.
Since November 2023, Houthis have launched more than 100 attacks on passing ships, sinking two ships, seizing one, and killing at least four seamen.