Danish shipping group Maersk said on Monday (May 6) that disruptions to the container shipping industry caused by the Red Sea wave are spreading, and it expects to reduce container traffic capacity between the Far East and Europe by about 15% to 20% in the second quarter of this year.

    Since the Red Sea crisis erupted in December, Maersk and other shipping companies have rerouted ships to near the Cape of Good Hope in Africa to avoid being attacked in the Red Sea. This has also led to longer voyages and higher freight rates.

    Maersk said in an update to customers on Monday that "the risk area has now expanded and the attack is spreading further offshore."

    It added, "This has forced our vessels to extend their voyages further and has resulted in additional time and costs for customers' cargo to reach their destinations."

    The shipping company, which is seen as a barometer of global trade, has reiterated several times this year that shipping disruptions caused by the Red Sea attack will last for months. In February, the company thought the Red Sea crisis could continue into the second half of the year; Last week, Maersk said it would continue "at least until the end of this year".

    The cost of shipping containers, the backbone of global trade, has soared since the Houthi attack in mid-November, while increased delivery times have created supply chain problems for retailers and manufacturers.

    Today, the knock-on effects of disruptions in the Red Sea include capacity bottlenecks and so-called fleet congestion, which is congestion caused by several ships arriving at a port at the same time.

    "We are doing everything we can to improve reliability, including increasing speed and increasing capacity," Maersk said. Maersk also added that it has so far leased more than 125,000 additional containers.

    "Where possible, we have increased capacity in line with customer demand," the company said.