The combination of the Suez Canal, Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait is a shortcut for ships to travel between Europe and Asia. Close to 10% of global seaborne trade passed through Bab el-Mandeb annually before the Houthi strikes began in 2023. That share had fallen to around 3% last year, based on data from Clarksons Research and the PortWatch platform from the International Monetary Fund and Oxford University.