A New Suez Crisis Threatens The World Economy -- The Economist

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Global shipping firms are suspending voyages in the Red Sea

The Economist

Dec 16th 2023

More than a thousand miles from Gaza, a naval crisis is unfolding that could transform the war between Israel and Hamas into a global affair with implications for the world economy.

Since Dec. 15, four of the world’s five largest container-shipping companies, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, Maersk, and MSC, have paused or suspended their services in the Red Sea, the route through which traffic from the Suez Canal must pass, as Iran-backed Houthi militants, armed with sophisticated weapons, escalate their attacks on global shipping flows.

As one of the world’s major trade arteries suddenly closes, America and its allies are ramping up naval activity in the Middle East, and may even attack the Houthis, to re-establish free passage.

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