Suez Canal vessel transits rebound as ocean carriers resume Red Sea sailings

Vessel traffic through the Suez Canal increased by 27% year-on-year in August 2026, with 1,358 vessels carrying 68.3 million metric tons of net cargo transiting the waterway, according to the Suez Canal Authority. The traffic surge generated $567.1 million in monthly revenue (a 56.7% increase), driven by an accelerated return of the major ocean carriers re-routing Asia-Europe services through the Red Sea rather than around the Cape of Good Hope. The routing normalisation reached 27% overall in September, with the return heavily concentrated on the Europe-to-Asia backhaul direction (jumping from 18-26% in August to 25-47% in September). 

Carriers are prioritising Mediterranean-to-Asia return legs to shorten voyage times by 14 to 21 days, allowing fast repositioning of empty equipment and vessels to relieve severe port congestion across major Asian export hubs, said a report.

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