Suez Canal Container Traffic Plummets Despite Signals of Red Sea Return

Container ship transits through the Suez Canal are approaching their lowest point for all of 2025, even as global carriers weigh a return to this Middle East trade route.

According to Peter Sand, Chief Analyst at Xeneta, the final week of November recorded the second-lowest number of container vessel transits through the waterway this year, with a total of just 28 ships. This figure is down from 30 vessels the previous week and sits just above the nadir of 25 vessels recorded during the week of September 15-21.

Citing data from Egypt-based shipping agency Leth on LinkedIn, Sand stated: “July had the lowest monthly number of transits, 146, marking a change of direction in the trend. An average 4.7 containerships were transiting the Suez Canal on a daily basis in July. Since then a slow-burning increase is identified, reaching 5.0 in October, before going down to 4.9 in November.”

Financial Pressure and Hopes from the Ceasefire

Since 2023, most major shipping lines have diverted away from the Suez/Red Sea route (connecting Asia with the Mediterranean, Europe, and North America) to sail around the Cape of Good Hope. However, a recent ceasefire in Gaza has rekindled hopes for a return after Houthi forces in Yemen announced they would pause attacks on merchant vessels.

Carriers are currently seeing profits erode due to higher operating expenses (OPEX) for the longer voyages, coupled with falling freight rates on headhaul routes from Asia to the United States.

Nevertheless, volatility remains a key characteristic of the current market. Sand observed: “On average 34.5 containerships were transiting the Suez Canal in weeks 36 through 48, a period of significant volatility. Seeing a highpoint by mid-November (week 46) where 43 transits took place and a low point in week 38 at just 25 container ships.”

Liner Shipping Connectivity Index Declines

Data from Seasearcher for the previous week shows there were 39 transits through the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea near the Gulf of Aden, heading towards the Port of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.

However, Sand argues that these increases were insufficient to prevent the UN Conference on Trade and Development's (UNCTAD) Liner Shipping Connectivity Index (LSCI) from plunging from 557.57 in Q4 2023 to 413.52 in Q3 2025.

In a contrasting development, the Suez Canal recorded a 20% increase in daily transits for all other vessel types (excluding container ships) over the past six months, rising from 28.3 transits in June to 33.9 in November.

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Source: Phaata.com (According to Freight Waves)

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