According to EastFruit analysts, the suspension of container lines movement along the Red Sea and the Suez Canal due to terrorist attacks on civilian ships by the Yemeni Houthis at the height of the orange harvest season has led to a serious crisis for citrus producers in Egypt. It is also creating a deficit of fruits for the orange consumers in Asia. Currently, Egyptian exporters are urgently looking for alternative routes to ship their fruits, and Egyptian growers were forced to suspend harvesting oranges, fearing a collapse in prices.
Egypt is the third largest exporter of fresh oranges in the world after Spain and South Africa. In addition, it is believed that Egypt exports the most competitively priced citrus fruits. The main orange markets for Egypt are Russia, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, the European Union, India, the UAE, Great Britain, China, and Malaysia. At the same time, one of the most attractive export markets for Egyptian oranges is currently Asia.
“Given the situation in the Red Sea, more than a third of all orange exports from Egypt, the most profitable part of it, are currently blocked, impacting growers, traders, transportation companies and consumers”, says FAO economist Andriy Yarmak.
For Southeast Asia, Egypt is the main supplier of fresh oranges during this period of the year. Therefore, here, too, a serious shortage of products is brewing, which, even with a strong desire, other suppliers, such as China and the USA, will not be able to cover. Moreover, China itself is a major buyer of oranges from Egypt. At the same time, the harvesting of oranges in the countries of the Southern Hemisphere will begin only in June.
Most likely, under these conditions, Spain will increase orange shipments to Southeast Asian countries using a bypass route, and Egypt will begin to supply more oranges to the EU and Eastern European countries until the logistics situation normalizes. However, no one can say yet when it will return to normal. We continue to closely monitor developments and will keep you informed.
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