A maritime military coalition of 10 countries, including France, has been formed to protect shipping traffic in the Red Sea. This armada, led by the United States, aims to prevent missile or drone attacks from the Houthis, the armed group in Yemen allied with Iran, which acts to counter the continuous bombings of Israel on the Gaza Strip. As often happens, "warlike geopolitics" quickly becomes an economic issue.

The problem has become global. Indeed, container ships and oil tankers are hesitant to pass through the Suez Canal... or have even given up on attempting it. While this does not really shake the financial markets – Wall Street is close to its historic highs – the price of oil, however, is climbing due to the situation in the Red Sea.

The alternative route would be to go around Africa via the Cape of Good Hope, which raises the issue of increased energy costs for these ships and a 40% increase in travel time compared to the most direct route. These are additional costs for maritime transport companies... but the skyrocketing insurance prices for these sea giants leave no other choice than to circumvent Africa. These increases in risk premiums for insuring ships and goods could ultimately be reflected in the final prices. If the risk persists for passage through the Suez Canal, the consumer, at the end of the chain, will end up paying the bill!

20,000 ships transit annually through the famous Isthmus. The world's largest carriers such as France's CMA CGM, Denmark's Maersk, and Germany's Hapag-Lloyd have given up taking the shortest route. The International Chamber of Shipping estimates that attacks on merchant ships by the Yemeni guerrillas now constitute "an extremely serious threat to international trade," according to its statement.

Beyond geopolitical questions, concrete questions are being asked by the finance ministries and other corridors of economic ministries in Europe: will this have repercussions on the price of goods and thus become a new driver for inflation? The question is already being raised by speculation... We remember how the war in Ukraine had a major impact on the rise in our prices... a rise driven by speculation.

This would be a harsh blow for the purchasing power, which is already in great difficulty for many citizens in Europe and around the world.