FACTBOX-Shipping companies react to Houthi attacks in Red Sea

Houthi militants in Yemen have stepped up attacks on vessels in the Red Sea region, impacting a shipping route vital to east-west trade.

In response, some shipping companies have instructed vessels to instead sail around southern Africa, a longer and therefore more expensive route. Below are actions taken by companies (in alphabetical order):

C.H. ROBINSON The global logistics group said on Dec. 22 it had rerouted more than 25 vessels around Africa over the previous week, and that number was likely to grow.

CMA CGM The French shipping group has suspended most Red Sea voyages but is still sending some cargoes on a case by case basis when French navy escorts were possible, Chairman and CEO Rodolphe Saade said on Feb. 29.

The company expects disruptions to commercial shipping to last months. DIANA SHIPPING

The company's vessels are avoiding the Suez Canal. "Suez Canal transits are running about 40% below those seen during the first half of December last year. This is partially the result of several operators including ourselves avoiding the area," President Anastasios Margaronis said on Feb. 23.

EURONAV The Belgian oil tanker firm said on Dec. 18 it would avoid the Red Sea until further notice.

EVERGREEN The Taiwanese container shipping line said on Dec. 18 its vessels on regional services to Red Sea ports would sail to safe waters nearby, while ships scheduled to pass through the Red Sea would be rerouted around Africa.

FRONTLINE The Norway-based oil tanker group on Dec. 18 said its vessels would avoid the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

GRAM CAR CARRIERS The Norwegian auto carrier said on Dec. 21 its vessels were restricted from passing through the Red Sea.

HAFNIA The Norwegian shipping firm said on Jan. 12 it had halted all ships heading towards or within the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

HAPAG-LLOYD The German container shipping line said on March 14 the Red Sea disruptions and global vessel oversupply would force it to cut expenses in 2024, including adapting sailings.

The company, which had decided in January to reroute its vessels around Africa until further notice, warned the impact of the rerouting will show up in the first quarter. HMM

The South Korean container shipper said on Dec. 19 it had ordered its ships which would normally use the Suez Canal to reroute around Africa. HOEGH AUTOLINERS

The Norwegian auto carrier said on Dec. 20 it would stop sailing via the Red Sea. On Feb. 8 the company said that the Red Sea disruptions were adversely impacting its capacity and volumes.

KLAVENESS COMBINATION CARRIERS The Norway-based fleet operator said on Jan. 16 it would not trade any of its vessels through the Red Sea until the situation improves.

KUEHNE + NAGEL Swiss logistics group Kuehne + Nagel said on March 1 it expects the impact from the Red Sea crisis to last into the coming quarters and impact its Q2 EBIT in a low double-digit million Swiss francs range.

MAERSK The Danish shipping group on Jan. 5 suspended Red Sea traffic "for the foreseeable future".

On Feb. 8, it warned that container shipping overcapacity would hit profits more than expected this year, and that it did not see a major boost from the jump in freight rates due to disruptions. On Feb. 27, the shipping company warned of disruptions to container shipping via the Red Sea dragging into the second half of the year and of heavy congestion and delays for U.S.-bound goods.

MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) said on Dec. 16 its ships would not transit through the Suez Canal.

NIPPON YUSEN Japan's biggest shipper by sales suspended navigation through the Red Sea for all vessels it operates, a spokesperson told Reuters on Jan. 16.

OCEAN NETWORK EXPRESS Ocean Network Express, a joint venture between Japan's Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines and Nippon Yusen, said on Dec. 19 it would reroute vessels from the Red Sea to the Cape of Good Hope or temporarily pause journeys and move to safe areas.

OOCL The Hong Kong-headquartered container group said on Dec. 21 it had instructed its vessels to either divert their route away from the Red Sea or suspend sailing. It also stopped accepting cargo to and from Israel until further notice.

STAR BULK Star Bulk's CEO said on Feb. 13 the Greece-headquartered company would halt sailings through the Red Sea after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis attacked two of its ships.

TAILWIND SHIPPING LINES Lidl unit Tailwind Shipping Lines, which transports non-food goods for the discount supermarket chain and goods for third-party customers, said in December it was sailing around Africa for now.

TORM The Danish oil tanker group said on Jan. 12 it had decided to pause all transits through the southern Red Sea for now.

WALLENIUS WILHELMSEN The Norwegian shipping group said on Dec. 19 it would halt Red Sea transits until further notice.

YANG MING MARINE TRANSPORT The Taiwanese container shipping company said on Dec. 18 it would divert ships sailing through the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden via the Cape of Good Hope for the next two weeks.

The company has given no further update. (Compiled by Paolo Laudani, Izabela Niemiec, Jesus Calero, Louis van Boxel-Woolf, Tristan Veyet, Elsa Ohlen and Tomasz Kanik in Gdansk; Editing by Jason Neely, Jan Harvey and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

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