A Shanghai–Rotterdam voyage via the Suez Canal typically covers approximately 10,500–10,600 nautical miles, taking three to four weeks depending on vessel speed and port scheduling. The Cape of Good Hope alternative adds roughly 3,200 nautical miles and seven or more days at typical liner service speeds — which is a meaningful addition to round-trip voyage time.
That extra week per voyage doesn’t just delay individual shipments. It removes vessel capacity from circulation systemically: a ship spending an extra week in transit is a ship that can’t load the next cargo that’s waiting for it. Across dozens of Asia–Europe services each rerouting simultaneously, the aggregate effect is a significant tightening of effective global vessel capacity — which translates directly into higher freight rates and, with a lag, into tighter domestic used container supply in the US secondary market.
https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/9/13/red-sea-nations-watch-as-houthis-seize-bab-al-mandeb-strait
https://yescontainers.com/the-impact-of-houthi-attacks-on-red-sea-shipping-and-the-suez-canal/
It also means that anything perishable is fucked.