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100 days after the latest attack in the Red Sea, shipping continues to stay away in large numbers. But one segment has returned to a greater extent, according to a new analysis.

On Sept. 29, the most recent attack took place on shipping in the Red Sea when the ship Minervagracht was attacked by the Yemeni Houthi movement.

Although it has now been 100 days, and even though the Houthi movement has declared a complete halt to its attacks on shipping, shipping companies are still hesitant to sail through the Red Sea and thus also the Suez Canal.

This is stated in a fresh analysis by the shipping organization Bimco, which compares the number of transits in the fourth quarter of 2025 with 2023, before the attacks began.

“Despite this, traffic through the Suez Canal has not increased significantly and in the first week of 2026 remained 60% below the corresponding week in 2023, before ships started diverting around the Cape of Good Hope,” writes Niels Rasmussen, chief shipping analyst at Bimco, in an update.

Since January 2024, the quarterly tonnage that has sailed through the Suez Canal has been between 51 and 64% lower than in 2023.

In 2025, transits were between 57 and 64% lower, according to Bimco, which also provides information on how traffic has been distributed across ship segments.

Product tankers sail through more frequently

In the dry cargo segment, transits were 55% lower, while capacity in the container segment had fallen by as much as 86% since 2023. Conversely, oil tanker transits were 32% lower, and for product tankers the decline was 19%.

Bimco estimates that product tankers have returned to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal to a greater extent in order to take advantage of rising freight rates. In 2024, the reduction for product tankers was 45% below the 2023 level.

Virtually all container ships have avoided the Red Sea since the attacks began. However, CMA CGM recently announced that two of its services will once again sail through the waters. CMA CGM is the only major shipping company to have sailed some of its ships through the Red Sea with French military escort throughout the period.

Maersk has also sailed its first ship through the Red Sea, but has not yet announced any further voyages. The shipping company has announced that it is moving towards a gradual return, provided that the security situation remains stable.

“A normalization of ship transits now appears more likely than at any point during the last two years, but it remains unknown if, or how fast, this may happen,” says Bimco’s Niels Rasmussen.

“A return to the Suez Canal would reduce shipping companies’ costs significantly but also hurt ship demand. A full normalization is estimated to reduce container ship demand by approximately 10%, while other sectors could see 2-3% reductions,” he adds.

Source: SHIPPINGWATCH

The deal struck by the US and China to pause reciprocal port fees for one year starting Monday has generally been welcomed by shipping, agricultural and manufacturing interests as well as port industry players, the US Trade Representative said, although the move has been criticized by labor unions.

The USTR said in a statement Sunday it received 73 responses during a 48-hour comment period it held last Thursday and Friday to garner feedback from the pause in port fees and tariffs targeting China.

“Many [respondents] noted that suspension of the action would lower shipping costs and avoid commercial disruption,” the USTR said, adding the pause would provide an opportunity for the US to negotiate with China “on the issues raised in this investigation and permit additional time to find solutions to increase investment in US shipbuilding.”

The USTR also confirmed in its statement that planned 100% tariffs on China-built ship-to-shore cranes and other cargo handling equipment, due to take effect Monday, have also been suspended for a year.

It said it is still accepting comments until Tuesday on proposals to impose tariffs of up to 150% on certain cargo handling equipment produced in China, including rubber tire gantry cranes and related components. But any action is likely to be stayed in the wake of the broad trade deal announced Oct. 30 between Washington and Beijing.

Highlighting the advantages of the port fee suspension, Joe Kramek, president and CEO of the Washington, DC-based World Shipping Council, said the pause would support the “continued use of US small and medium-sized ports, and contribute to lower costs for US farmers and manufacturers who rely on ocean liner transportation to move $335 billion in American exports each year.”

Kramek was one of several respondents to call for the USTR to make the suspension permanent.

More than 20 agricultural and farmer groups including cotton, citrus, almond, potato and dairy producers welcomed the port fee and tariff freeze, pointing out their ability to compete overseas would be otherwise undercut.

“Additional costs from port fees or equipment tariffs would directly harm US farmers and exporters, reduce export opportunities and weaken rural economies that depend heavily on agricultural trade,” USA Pulses CEO Tim McGreevy said in the group’s submission.

He also recommended agriculture’s “complete exemption from all related Section 301 fees, including port fees, vessel sourcing requirements, and tariffs on critical port equipment and components.”

China’s Transport Ministry, meanwhile, confirmed it had suspended its reciprocal port fees on US-linked ships from 1 p.m. local time Monday. The measure applies to US-owned, -operated, -flagged or -controlled ships.

Details please refer to the JOC news.

Source: JOC

The shipping industry has faced increased costs and logistical hurdles due to port fees. A new U.S.-China economic and trade agreement, announced by the White House, will suspend U.S. port fees on Chinese-built and operated vessels starting November 10. In exchange, China will eliminate its retaliatory measures, including extending its market-based tariff exclusion for U.S. imports until December 31, 2026, and halting antitrust, anti-monopoly, and anti-dumping investigations into U.S. semiconductor firms.

During this period, both countries will address maritime issues through negotiations, while the U.S. will collaborate with South Korea and Japan to bolster its shipbuilding sector. The longstanding dispute over port fees, intended to counter China’s dominance in global shipping, has cost the industry an estimated $3.2 billion annually. Earlier this week, a 12-month fee suspension was announced, though initial details on its start date and specifics were not provided.

Source: SHIPPINGWATCH