THERE has been a material shift in Red Sea security dynamics, according to the Egyptian government, which is seeking to stem $8bn of revenue losses from the Suez Canal.

Writing exclusively in Lloyd’s List today, Egypt’s minister of foreign affairs Badr Abdelatty said the recent ceasefire agreement in Yemen, reached under the auspices of Oman, should restore maritime sector confidence that safe navigation of the Red Sea was now possible.

The minister’s message, which he directed to the majority of the shipping operators who have not yet returned to Red Sea routes amid continuing security concerns, comes as part of a wider charm offensive from the Egyptian government seeking to persuade shipowners to return to the Suez Canal.

Egypt has been haemorrhaging $800m a month since the beginning Houthi attacks on shipping last year and despite a ceasefire agreement being announced traffic has not materially changed.

Earlier this month the Suez Canal Authority offered containerships a 15% discount on transit fees as the government stepped up efforts to lure shipping back.

However, despite government intervention and a direct approach from the canal authority which has been hosting a series of high-level industry meetings with industry officials, vessel traffic is yet to respond beyond a handful of test voyages from shipowners considering a return.

Suez Canal traffic for April remains 58% lower than in April 2023, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence vessel-tracking data.

The ceasefire agreement, however, should offer “reassurance to global shipping stakeholders and supporting the steady flow of international trade through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal”, said Abdelatty.

“With the recent agreement, vessels can now navigate with greater confidence, allowing for smoother, faster, and more cost-effective transport of goods between Africa, Europe, Asia and beyond,” he said.

Despite the concerted push on the part of the Egyptian government, security experts continue to warn that shipping passing through the Red Sea carries a significant risk.

The Houthis announced a “prohibition on maritime navigation to and from the port of Haifa” on Monday, stating that violators of the ban will be classified as supporters of Israel and subject to “sanctions”.

“The fleets of these companies will be prohibited from transiting the Red Sea, the Bab el Mandeb Strait, the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean,” said the Houthis’ Humanitarian Operations Co-ordination Center — through which the militants communicate with the shipping industry — in an email.

“Moreover, they will be subject to targeting wherever they may be reached by the Yemeni Armed Forces.”

Maersk chief executive Vincent Clerc said during an earnings call on May 8 that the Danish liner did not believe the Red Sea would reopen to container traffic in 2025. Clerc stressed the connection between the war in Gaza and a return to the Red Sea, dismissing the significance of the US-Houthi truce.

During a conference call last week, Hapag-Lloyd chief executive Rolf Habben said boxships would continue rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope until the end of the year, and that a future return to the Red Sea would be gradual, timed over a three- to six-month period.