Logistically Speaking - Hot Sheet Week 4

The Largest Diversion of International Trade

A series of missile, drone, and hijacking attacks targeting civilian ships in the Red Sea over the past two months has resulted in the most significant disruption to international trade in decades, leading to increased expenses for shippers across Asia and North America. These attacks, carried out by Houthi militants following the Israel-Hamas war, have led to the most significant diversion of international trade in decades. Despite retaliatory strikes by the US and its allies and multinational naval operations, the assaults persist, causing sailors to demand higher pay and insurance rates to skyrocket. Shipping lines are avoiding the Red Sea, a waterway that typically handles 12% of the world's seaborne trade. As a result, more than 500 container ships are diverting their routes, adding two weeks to their journeys around the Cape of Good Hope. This diversion affects about a quarter of the world's container shipping