CAIRO, July 8 -- The Suez Canal transit receipts decreased by 57.2 percent to register 959.3 million U.S. dollars in the first quarter of 2024, according to a statement released on Monday by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE).

The statement said the Suez Canal transit receipts decreased by 7.4 percent from July 2023 to March 2024, recording 5.8 billion dollars, compared to 6.2 billion dollars in the same period of the previous year.

The net tonnage declined by 15.6 percent to register 944.9 million tons, and the number of transiting vessels dropped by 11.5 percent from July 2023 to March 2024, the CBE added.

Egypt's fiscal year starts on July 1 and ends on June 30 of the next year.

The CBE noted that the decrease stemmed primarily from the Red Sea maritime traffic disruptions which forced several commercial shipping companies to divert their shipping routes.

Since the outbreak of the Gaza conflict last October, Yemen's Houthi group has repeatedly attacked ships in the Red Sea that have links to Israel.

The United States and Britain launched several airstrikes on Houthi military sites in the Yemeni capital Sanaa and other provinces under the group's control since January in response to the Houthi attacks in the region.

The Suez Canal, carrying 12 percent of global trade, is a crucial source of foreign currency for Egypt.

  - Xinhua