Sectors most exposed to disruption from Red Sea attacks

(Reuters) - Global companies are dealing with rising supply logjams due to ongoing attacks by Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi militants in the Red Sea which have disrupted the flow of shipments through the key Suez Canal trade route.

Automakers Tesla , Geely-owned Volvo Car and Suzuki Motor said they were suspending some production in Europe due to a shortage of components in the first clear sign that the attacks are hitting manufacturers.

The United States and Britain launched a series of strikes on Yemen on Jan. 11 aimed at the Iran-backed Houthi militia. Container shipping prices have risen and companies are rerouting vessels via a much longer southern Africa route that adds about 10 days to shipping, about $1 million in fuel and could potentially create product shortages and delays.

Data from S&P Global showed the Suez Canal route accounts for 14.8% of all Europe and Middle East and North Africa (MENA) imports. Its analysis showed consumer goods, clothing and chemicals were among the sectors at most risk.

S&P Global analyses more than 300 industrial categories and over 6,000 products, and when assessing industrial and product exposure, it looks at the Suez route as a proportion of all freight in the region: a higher ratio implies fewer alternatives from other markets or transportation modes.

Here are some of the sectors exposed to the Suez Canal route:

Sector/product category Suez route shipments as a

proportion of all freight

imports to Europe/MENA

Consumer goods

Toys 47.0%

Household appliances 39.5%

Apparel 39.3%

Food

Palm oil 58.2%

Rice 51.4%

Tea 47.5%

Metals and

chemicals

Inorganic chemicals 24.2%

Organic chemicals 24.0%

Flat-rolled steel 22.3%

Manufactured steel products 20.9%

Utility

Power generating equipment 26.7%

Automotive

Road wheels 20.9%

Components for 67.2%

batteries

Lithium ion 65.9%

batteries

Brakes 48.1%

Drive axels 44.1%

Windshields 41.4%

Meanwhile, seaborne deliveries represented 55.1% of all shipments from Europe/MENA to Asia or Gulf destinations. But deliveries via the Suez Canal accounted for just 8.6% of all those imports.

Sector/product category Suez route shipments as a

proportion of all freight

imports to Asia/Gulf

Automotive

Passenger vehicles 41.3%

Motor vehicle parts 20.8%

Perishable food

items

Frozen pork 46.9%

Milk products 40.4%

Butter products 30.0%

Shelf-stable

consumer goods

Spirits 49.1%

Beer 44.7%

Cereal-based foods 36.0%

Perfumes, beauty products 24.0%

Source: S&P Global Market Intelligence

(This story has been refiled to remove extraneous text in the headline)

(Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Louise Heavens)

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