Navigating Troubled Waters: Impact to Global Trade of Disruption of Shipping Routes in the Red Sea, Black Sea and Panama Canal

Maritime transport, the backbone of international trade, is responsible for 80% of the global movement of goods. Disruptions in key global shipping route – Suez Canal, Panama Canal and Black Sea – signal unprecedented challenges for global trade affecting millions of people in every region. According to the UNCTAD report, attacks on shipping affecting the Suez Canal add to geopolitical tensions impacting shipping routes in the Black Sea, and severe drought due climate change disrupting shipping in the Panama Canal. UNCTAD estimates that transits passing the Suez Canal decreased by 42% compared to its peak. With major players in the shipping industry temporarily suspending Suez transits, weekly container ship transits have fallen by 67%, and container carrying capacity, tanker transits, and gas carriers have experienced significant declines. Meanwhile, total transits through the Panama Canal plummeted by 49% compared to its peak.