Suez Canal Traffic Not Affected by Coronavirus Outbreak

Osama Rabie, Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), stressed that the navigation traffic and the number of ships passing through the canal have not been affected by the deadly Coronavirus outbreak so far.

In a meeting with Parliament’s African affairs committee headed by MP Tarek Radwan on Wednesday, Rabie said, "We hope that no effect will take place, especially since 13% of China's trade passes through the Suez Canal."

In addition, Rabei said that President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi is always keen to follow up the Suez canal traffic, and how it is affected by global economic developments.

Moreover, he added that the new marketing policy adopted by the cannel and the readiness of boats and ships led to an increase in cargo to reach 1.2 billion tons in the fiscal year 2018/2019, an increase of 100 million tons, comparing to the previous year.

The new Suez canal has greatly contributed to raising the international classification of the canal, according to Rabie.

In an official statement issued last week. SCA pointed out that the increase in the numbers and tonnages of vessels transiting the canal positively reflects the revenues of the Suez Canal.

The revenue increased by 6.1% to reach about $ 497.1 million during Jan. compared to $468.7 million during the same month last year, an increase of $28.4 million.

The authority called on all media and social media outlets to investigate the accuracy and objectivity of what is being published, and not to pay attention to fake news.