Last year, 576 containers were lost during maritime transport – an increase from 221 containers in 2023.

This is shown in the report “Containers Lost at Sea” by shipping organization World Shipping Council (WSC), which represents approximately 90% of container shipping companies globally.

Although this is more than double the figure for 2023, the level is significantly lower than the average for the last ten years of 1,274 containers per year.

“The overall trend remains encouraging. Despite occasional increases, long-term data continues to show a clear decline in container losses compared to previous years,” WSC says.

Last year, approximately 250 million containers were shipped by sea. This represents a loss of 0.0002%.

A large proportion of the lost containers fell overboard on the route south of Africa, which has become significantly more busy over the past two years due to unrest in the Red Sea.

In 2023, the Houthi movement reacted to Israel’s war in Gaza by threatening and attacking shipping traffic in the Red Sea. This prompted many shipping companies to send their ships on a long detour south of the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa instead of through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.

According to WSC, the number of ships on the route has increased by 191% compared to previous years.

“Despite continued loss-prevention efforts by the industry, the re-routing of transits away from the Red Sea and around the Cape of Good Hope to keep global commerce moving has ocean carriers navigating one of the world’s most challenging routes, as highlighted in this report,” says Joe Kramek concluded.,” chief exec of WSC.

While historically few containers were lost in 2023, there were particularly high losses ten years earlier, in 2013, when 5,578 containers were lost.

Starting next year, shipping companies will be required to report container losses to the International Maritime Organization (IMO).