Finance
Spanish port traffic surges due to Red Sea crisis
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on January 31, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 26, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on January 31, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 26, 2026
Spanish ports saw a 6% traffic increase in 2024 due to Red Sea instability. Companies rerouted to avoid Houthi attacks, boosting Las Palmas and Barcelona volumes.
MADRID (Reuters) - The volume of goods moving through Spanish ports rose by 6% in 2024 after they became the first point of call in Europe for many companies avoiding attacks by Houthi militia on shipping in the Red Sea and sending their goods around southern Africa.
Las Palmas in the Canary Islands and Barcelona saw 13% and 9% increases respectively in volumes of merchandise, bulk liquids and dry bulk last year, the state port agency said on Friday.
"The situation has caused some specific peak moments of extra activity, to which Spanish ports have adapted," the agency told Reuters, adding it expected higher port traffic to continue as instability in the Red Sea persists.
Yemen's Houthis have carried out more than 100 attacks on ships since November 2023, sinking two vessels and seizing another in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
The Houthis said last week they would cease attacking vessels owned by U.S. or British companies and limit them to Israel-linked commercial ships following a ceasefire deal in Gaza. But transport companies have said the risks remain too high to resume using the Red Sea route.
"Carriers will want to be assured there is an outlook for long-term safe passage before returning to the Red Sea to avoid further massive disruption if the situation deteriorates and they are forced to divert around Cape of Good Hope once again," said Emily Stausbøll, a senior shipping analyst at freight platform Xeneta.
The traffic of goods moved in containers through Spain's ports rose by 11% last year, while Spanish ports also recorded an increase in vessels bunkering to prepare for longer routes, the agency said. In 2023, the ports saw a 4.5% decline in container traffic.
Some Spanish retailers shipped more goods by air to meet demand because of the additional two weeks required to ship goods to Europe via southern Africa, according to two executives in the local fashion industry.
(Reporting by Corina Pons. Editing by Charlie Devereux and Mark Potter)
The article discusses the increase in Spanish port traffic due to companies avoiding the Red Sea amid Houthi attacks.
The crisis led to companies rerouting shipments around southern Africa, increasing Spanish port traffic.
Las Palmas and Barcelona experienced the highest increases in traffic.
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