Cosco and OOCL begin Red Sea transits in broadening Suez Canal return

Chinese carriers Cosco Shipping and subsidiary Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) began resuming Red Sea transits on Tuesday, joining Ocean Alliance partner CMA CGM in a broadening industry return to the Suez Canal that is reshaping container shipping nearly three years after Houthi attacks first drove carriers away.

Five services operated by Cosco and OOCL ships are starting eastbound Suez transits this week, with the OOCL Portugal departing Tuesday, followed by the Cosco Spain and Cosco Taurus on Wednesday and the Cosco Kilimanjaro on Sept. 20, according to a report from Linerlytica cited by WWD. The OOCL Denmark will depart on Sept. 28.wwd

A Widening Return

The moves add to an accelerating comeback. Maersk A.P. Møller – Mærsk A/S and Hapag-Lloyd have separately expanded their trans-Suez routing across six services since the summer. MSC has also confirmed plans to restore selected services through the canal, including the Indusa route connecting the Indian subcontinent with the Americas, with the first departure scheduled from Colombo on Sept. 23. Maersk CEO Vincent Clerc said conditions for a full return to Suez in 2026 were in place but that the company was moving gradually to avoid overwhelming already congested terminals.scangl+2

The holdouts are narrowing. Evergreen and all three Premier Alliance members — Ocean Network Express, HMM, and Yang Ming — remain the major carriers that have yet to send a vessel back through the Red Sea.wwd

Confidence Returns, Risks Remain

For the week of Sept. 13–20, major carriers are expected to make 27 Suez Canal transits, with Maersk accounting for 10 and CMA CGM eight. Total crossings reached 256 in the prior week, up 3.2 percent from 248 the week before, according to MarineTraffic data. Crossings by ultra-large vessels above 18,000 TEU through the Bab el-Mandeb strait have jumped from one in 2025 to 44 so far this year, according to Lloyd's List London Stock Exchange Group plc.lloydslist+1

The return is driven partly by economics. With elevated fuel costs from Strait of Hormuz disruptions, Cape of Good Hope diversions now cost $4 million to $5.5 million in fuel alone for a 16,000 TEU vessel, tilting the calculus toward the shorter but riskier Suez route. Linerlytica reports the total capacity diverted to the Cape has dropped to a two-year low of 4.6 percent of the global fleet.wwd+1

Security Concerns Linger

The commercial momentum persists despite an unsettled security picture. Houthi forces captured territories on Yemen's coast late last week, including the Port of Mokha, establishing a stronger presence near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Traffic briefly dipped from 42 transits on Thursday to 24 on Friday before recovering to a weekly high of 43 on Sunday. A planned Monday meeting among Gulf states and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz was postponed after Saudi Arabia requested a delay amid renewed Houthi missile and drone attacks on a Saudi airbase.wwd

Analysts urge caution. Scan Global Logistics warned that the return to Suez is gradual rather than instant and "unlikely to impact short- and mid-term" freight rate developments, recommending that shippers review cargo insurance arrangements for war-risk coverage in the Red Sea region.scangl