Maersk CEO says conditions right to increase transit through Suez

Maersk, a Danish shipping company that accounts for 15 percent of maritime transport worldwide, reported a second-quarter operating profit above expectations and raised its full-year earnings guidance.

CEO Vincent Clerc said he thought the "conditions for a full return to Suez during 2026 are in place", as long as "nothing happens in Yemen".

Yemen's Houthis have been attacking ships transiting through Bab al-Mandab and the Red Sea since 2023, and announced a full blockade of vessels transporting Saudi oil last month.

Clerc added that high freit rates in the maritime industry were currently due to "congested ports, not the Strait of Hormuz". He said Maersk would continue assessing security conditions to start the "next phase of returning to the Suez [canal] with partner Hapag-Lloyd", a German shipping company which transports 7 percent of global maritime cargo.