A Giant Cargo Ship Stuck In Egypt’s Suez Canal Is Blocking Vital Trade Route Between Asia And Europe

A cargo ship blown off its course and stuck in Suez Canal in Egypt. It is blocking vital trade route between asia and Europe.

Over 156 cargo ships and oil tankers are now lining up, waiting to pass through the blocked waterway.

This blockage is reportedly delaying an estimated $400 million an hour in goods.

Lloyd’s values the canal’s westbound traffic at roughly $5.1 billion a day.

The eastbound traffic was valued at around $4.5 billion a day.

One of the largest container ships in the world has been blown off its course, causing the 220,000-ton, 400-metre-long ship to block the Suez canal in Egypt.

The inability of the megaship operated by the Taiwan-based firm Evergreen to steer has now caused a huge jam of vessels at either end of the vital international trade route.

Pictures taken from another waiting cargo ship shows the massive Evergreen container ship wedged across the canal.

With the Suez Canal blocked, a total of 156 cargo ships and oil tankers are now lining up, waiting to pass through the waterway to the Mediterranean Sea.

This blockage is reportedly delaying an estimated $400 million (or about N152.4 billion) an hour in goods.

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According to Suez Canal Authority (SCA), eight tugboats have been working day and night to free the vessel that is blocking a lane key to Asia-Europe trade.

The Suez canal in Egypt is one of the busiest and most important waterways in the world. According to Egyptian government statistics, about 50 ships passed through this route a day in 2019.

A top shipping insurer, Allianz said about 10% of global trade passes through the Suez Canal. Lloyd’s List, a shipping industry journal, added that nearly 19,000 vessels passed through this route last year.

Lloyd’s values the canal’s westbound traffic at roughly $5.1 billion a day. The eastbound traffic was valued at around $4.5 billion a day.

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