Business heads see Red Sea tensions causing lengthy trade dislocation

Business chiefs warned on Wednesday that disruption to shipping in the Red Sea caused by attacks by Houthi militants in Yemen could affect supply chains for months and lead to a shortage of tankers needed to transport fuel.

Attacks by the Iran-allied Houthi militia on ships in the region since November have slowed trade between Asia and Europe and alarmed major powers — an escalation of Israel's more than three-month-old war with Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza.

The Houthis say they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians and have threatened to expand attacks to include U.S. ships in response to American and British strikes on their sites in Yemen.

Maersk and other large shipping lines have instructed hundreds of commercial vessels to stay clear of the Red Sea, sending them on a longer route around Africa or pausing until the safety of vessels can be assured.

«This is extremely disruptive because you have close to 20% of global trade that transits through the Bab al-Mandab Strait (to the Red Sea),» said Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc.

«It's one of the most important arteries of global trade and global supply chains and it's clogged up right now,» he told Reuters Global Markets Forum in Davos.

Freight rates have more than doubled since early December, according to maritime consultancy Drewry's world container index, while insurance sources say war risk premiums for shipments through the Red Sea are also rising.

Banking executives have said they were worried the crisis might create inflationary pressures that could ultimately delay or reverse interest rate cuts.

U.S. Strikes

The alternative shipping route around South Africa's Cape of Good Hope can add 10-14 days to a journey when compared to a passage via the Red Sea to the Suez Canal.

Prolonged attacks by the Houthis on ships would lead to a shortage of tankers, the CEO of Saudi oil giant Aramco said.

«If it's in the short term, tankers might be available… But if it's longer term, it might be a problem,» CEO Amin Nasser said in an interview on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos.

The U.S. military carried out new strikes in Yemen on Tuesday against anti-ship ballistic missiles in a