Due to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, revenues from the Suez Canal have plummeted. Egypt has lost around $10 billion since the beginning of the crisis.
This was announced by Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on the sidelines of a meeting with OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann. According to al-Sisi, Egypt has overcome various global crises over the past five years through “forward-looking and carefully planned measures that have been explicitly recognized by international financial institutions”. The country is also pursuing this approach in dealing with the current crisis in connection with the war against Iran.
Nevertheless, Egypt has lost around $10 billion in revenue from the Suez Canal as a result of the attacks on ships in the Bab al-Mandab Strait in connection with the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, al-Sisi explained at the meeting.
According to the Suez Canal Authority’s annual report for 2025, the number of ships that passed through the Suez Canal in 2025 fell by 3.4%, or 455 ships. The net tonnage fell by 0.5 % from 524,547 GT to 522,084 GT.
At first glance, the decline from 2024 to 2025 does not appear to be dramatic. However, if you compare the years 2023 and 2025, the number of ships that passed through the Suez Canal fell by around 52% – from 26,434 to 12,758 units. Net tonnage fell from 1,568,257 GT to 522,084 GT during this period – a decrease of around 67 %.
The Suez Canal is one of the most important sources of foreign currency for Egypt, especially US dollars. It is also a central pillar of the Egyptian economy. The country generates billions in revenue every year from transit fees. Since the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023, this income has fallen dramatically. Due to the attacks by the Iran-backed Yemeni Houthis, major shipping companies are diverting their ships around Africa and the Cape of Good Hope.
