The Red Sea - a strategic maritime corridor handling roughly 30% of global container traffic - is now a hot zone of disruption, triggered by escalating Houthi attacks on commercial shipping. Since late 2023, over 33 vessels have been targeted, including missile and drone strikes, prompting a shift in global trade logistics.

To avoid the danger zone, shipping lines are rerouting cargo ships around the Cape of Good Hope, adding an extra 3,500–4,000 miles and prolonging transit by 7 to 14 days. This has drastically elevated freight costs, fuel expenses, and insurance premiums, with some war-risk insurance surging more than 14-fold.

The economic ripple effects are echoed in global trade: J.P. Morgan estimates that this crisis alone may add 0.7 percentage points to core goods inflation and impact global logistics capacity by nearly 9%. Adding to this, ports in Spain like Barcelona and Las Palmas are seeing surges in traffic - up 9% and 13%, respectively - as shippers bypass Red Sea routes.

In essence, the Red Sea crisis is reshaping shipping patterns, stoking inflationary pressures, and demanding agile global supply chain strategies.