Egypt’s Suez Canal revenues fell by nearly a quarter in the fiscal year ending in June as some shipping companies switched to alternative routes to avoid attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on ships passing through the Red Sea.
Suez Canal Authority Chairman Osama Rabie said in a statement today that revenues declined by 23.4% to $7.2 billion in fiscal year 2023-2024, compared to $9.4 billion in fiscal year 2022-2023.
The fiscal year in Egypt begins on July 1 and ends on June 30.
The Houthis have been attacking commercial ships heading to Israeli ports in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean since November, in order to pressure Israel to stop the war on Gaza.
The targeting circle has expanded to include ships belonging to the naval coalition formed by the United States to stop the attacks.
Rabie added that the rate of ships crossing the Suez Canal decreased to 20,148 ships during 2023-2024, from 25,911 ships in the previous fiscal year.
The Suez Canal is a major source of foreign currency in Egypt, and the authorities have tried in the past few years to increase its revenues through methods that included expanding it in 2015.
3 quarters data
According to data from the Central Bank of Egypt – issued this month – the canal’s traffic revenues declined by 7.4% between July and March of the 2023-2024 fiscal year, to $5.8 billion from $6.2 billion.
Net tonnage also declined by 15.6% to 994.5 million tons during this period, while the number of transiting ships declined by 11.5%.
During the period from January to March, the proceeds of transit fees decreased by 57.2%, or $959.3 million, compared to $2.2 billion during the same period last year.
