Freighters seek air cargo back-up amid Red Sea shipping crisis

More manufacturers are seeking to fly their products in the next few weeks as attacks on Red Sea shipping force them to find alternate routes, logistics firms say, a potential boon for a sector dealing with muted post-pandemic demand and overcapacity. The Red Sea, which leads to the Suez canal, lies on the key east-west trade route from Asia's manufacturing hubs to Europe and onto the east coast of the Americas. About 12% of world shipping traffic accesses the Suez Canal via its waters. But more than two months of attacks by Yemen's Houthi militia on ships in the region have affected companies and alarmed major powers in an escalation of Israel's war with Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza. While air freight prices have so far remained relatively stable as the shipping crisis coincides with a seasonal lull in demand, data from freight booker Freightos showed rates on a China-to-Europe route had surged 91% week-on-week on Sunday. Price reporting agency TAC Index also said there were signs of an uptick in China-to-Europe air freight rates this week. "We are talking to many customers already about increased air capacity," said Yngve Ruud, head of Air Logistics at global logistics firm Kühne+Nagel. "We have probably 20-30% more discussions and proposals than usual in January."<br/>