Major Shipping Lines Reroute from Tanger Med Amid Algeria-Morocco Trade Tensions

Maersk and CMA CGM have reduced or even eliminated the passage of their containers via the port of Tangier to Algeria, reports Le Desk. This is nevertheless one of their main transshipment hubs in the Mediterranean. Before this decision, APM, Maersk group’s terminal operator, was in charge of managing two terminals at the Moroccan port.

Valencia and the Andalusian dock are now the main transshipment centers for CMA CGM on its routes with Algeria. As for Maersk, the majority of its traffic to areas like Algiers, Skikda and Béjaïa will now go through Barcelona and Algeciras. Algeria has been able to warm up its relations with Spain in the last three months. Trade between the two countries had been suspended in 2022 due to Madrid’s recognition of the Moroccanness of the Sahara.

The decision of the Algerian authorities to ban Moroccan ports to its economic operators will not be without consequences on the activity of the country’s importers. They will have to face an additional cost. This decision could also have a negative impact on the Algerian economy. In a statement to the newspaper Al3omk, economist Badr Zaher Al Azraq specified that it will lead to an increase in freight costs and inflation of food prices in Algerian markets.