- The Suez Canal Authority is increasing the fees it charges ships passing through the critical waterway.
- This move is expected to pile further inflationary pressure on global supply chains.
Egypt’s Suez Canal Authority announced on Friday a 6% increase in transit tolls starting February 2022, citing concerns over further complications to the ongoing global supply chain disruption, reports Logistics Middle East.
The move aims to benefit from the cargo shipping sector’s recovery, following the lift of COVID-19 lockdowns around the world.
Exempted Vessels
Liquefied natural gas vessels and cruise ships will be excluded from the fee increase, as the tourism sector struggles to recover from COVID-19 implications.
“Tourism and travel sectors, including cruise ships and sea yachts, has suffered major losses worldwide, and is expected to fully recover by 2022,” the Suez Canal Authority said.
Record Profits
The waterway, responsible for 12% of global cargo traffic sustained a significant loss in March 2021, after being blocked for a week by an Ever Given cargo ship.
Nevertheless, the canal reported the highest monthly tonnage in its history in October, at 112.1 million tons with nearly 1,847 ships transiting, up 14% from 2020.
The International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization predicted global traffic to rise by 6.7% in 2022. which means higher profits for shipping lines and ports.
Major sea shipping lines reported record profits following the significant rise in container freight rates due to the global supply chain disruptions.
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Source: Logistics Middle East
