Mohammed Abu Zaid

CAIRO: Claims that maritime traffic in the Suez Canal has fallen in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have been rejected by the Egyptian government, which says the key trading link is setting new records.

The government’s media center said that it had contacted the Suez Canal Authority, which described the claims on social media as rumors.
Navigation movement in the canal during February 2022 reached a new high in terms of ship transit rates and net tonnages, the authority said.

“A total of 1,713 ships crossed from both directions, with a net tonnage of 100.1 million tons, compared with the transit of 1,532 ships during February last year, with a total net tonnage of 97.6 million tons,” the authority said.

It said that flexible marketing and pricing policies have encouraged new shipping lines to use the canal.

According to the government media center, the Suez Canal achieved record profits in 2021, with revenue totalling $6.3 billion, despite the effects of the pandemic on the global economy.

Performance rates in February this year are the highest for the month in the history of the canal, with revenue rising by 15.1 percent to $545.5 million, not including navigation services. This compares with $474.1 million for the same month last year.

Transit rates of various types of ships also rose compared with the same month last year, with bulk vessel numbers increasing by 29 percent, container ships by 11.8 percent and car carriers by 22.2 percent.