Ships turn toward Africa on concerns Suez Canal blockage to last weeks

A satellite image shows the "Ever Given" and idling ships at the entrance of the Suez Canal, Egypt March 25, 2021. Planet Labs Inc./Handout via Reuters

ISMAILIA, Egypt (Bloomberg): Ships are beginning costly and time-consuming detours around Africa with the Suez Canal still blocked by a massive container vessel, as concerns mount that a complex rescue mission could extend into weeks.

The prospect of a longer-than-anticipated outage along what’s arguably the world’s most important maritime trade route threatens further turmoil in a shipping sector that’s already scrambling to keep maritime transportation for everything from finished goods to energy and commodities on track.