Hapag-Lloyd Sees No Suez Passage Anytime Soon

Hapag-Lloyd sign on a container ship is pictured at the Valparaiso port, Chile, January 11, 2024. Reuters
Hapag-Lloyd sign on a container ship is pictured at the Valparaiso port, Chile, January 11, 2024. Reuters
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Hapag-Lloyd Sees No Suez Passage Anytime Soon

Hapag-Lloyd sign on a container ship is pictured at the Valparaiso port, Chile, January 11, 2024. Reuters
Hapag-Lloyd sign on a container ship is pictured at the Valparaiso port, Chile, January 11, 2024. Reuters

German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd does not anticipate the shipping industry to resume sailing through the Suez Canal anytime soon, even if a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel was reached now, a spokesperson for the company told Reuters on Tuesday.

The comments from the world's fifth-biggest shipping firm come after Palestinian groups welcomed a UN Security Council resolution backing a proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, according to Reuters.

Hapag-Lloyd and Danish peer Maersk shares were down 5-6% on Tuesday afternoon on the news.

But “even if there were to be a ceasefire now, this does not mean that the Houthi attacks will stop immediately,” the spokesperson said.

Even after the Suez Canal opens again for transit it would take at least four to six weeks to rearrange the schedules and for operations to return to normal, Hapag-Lloyd added.

Commercial shipping has faced global disruptions, including in the Red Sea region, where operators are avoiding the Suez Canal because of attacks on vessels by Yemen-based Houthi militants.

Maersk declined to comment on the news. Its CEO said in February the company would need a permanent solution before considering returning to the Red Sea.



Scholz: EU Ready to Respond to US on Trade Tariffs

30 March 2025, Lower Saxony, Hanover: Acting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at the opening ceremony of the Hannover Messe 2025 industrial trade fair at the Hannover Congress Centrum HCC. Photo: Michael Matthey/dpa
30 March 2025, Lower Saxony, Hanover: Acting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at the opening ceremony of the Hannover Messe 2025 industrial trade fair at the Hannover Congress Centrum HCC. Photo: Michael Matthey/dpa
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Scholz: EU Ready to Respond to US on Trade Tariffs

30 March 2025, Lower Saxony, Hanover: Acting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at the opening ceremony of the Hannover Messe 2025 industrial trade fair at the Hannover Congress Centrum HCC. Photo: Michael Matthey/dpa
30 March 2025, Lower Saxony, Hanover: Acting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at the opening ceremony of the Hannover Messe 2025 industrial trade fair at the Hannover Congress Centrum HCC. Photo: Michael Matthey/dpa

Europe wants to cooperate with the United States but the EU is ready to respond as one if Washington leaves it no choice by imposing tariffs on steel and aluminium, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Sunday.
Speaking at the opening of the Hanover industrial trade fair which this year has Canada as its partner country, Scholz also insisted that Canada is an independent country.
US President Donald Trump has mused about annexing Canada and referred to the country as the 51st US state.
"We stand by your side!" Scholz said, adding: "Canada is not a state that belongs to anyone else. Canada is a proud, independent nation."
Addressing Trump's plans to introduce tariffs, Scholz said his answer to "my country first" policies was more free trade, greater competitiveness and more technological sovereignty.
Scholz argued that Europe was not naive but also not weak, and said trade wars hurt all sides, Reuters reported.
"So I say to the United States: Europe's goal remains cooperation. But if the US leaves us no choice, such as with the tariffs on steel and aluminium, we as the EU will react as one".