U.S. Central Command said on the 17th that the U.S. military is continuing its strikes against the Houthis in Yemen.

The U.S. Central Command on the 17th released a video via social media showing warplanes taking off at night, confirming that the airstrike operation against Yemen's Houthis has entered its third day. According to officials, the military operation is focused on striking Houthi missile storage facilities in Sanaa, Hodeidah and other Red Sea coastal areas.

Another media report, citing Yemen's Houthi-controlled Saba news agency, said two airstrikes hit the Hodeidah area on the Red Sea coast in the early hours of the 17th local time, with explosions sparking a firestorm.

In an interview with the US channel Fox News, US Defence Secretary Doug Hegseth said, ‘This operation will end once the Houthis say, “We're going to stop firing on (US) ships and drones”.’ Otherwise, U.S. forces will ‘relentlessly’ fight the Houthis.

About an hour after the U.S. Central Command post, Houthi spokesman Yahya Sarea issued a video statement saying, ‘In continuation of the retaliation for the U.S. aggression against Yemen, the Houthis, for the second time in 24 hours, targeted the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman, located in the northern part of the Red Sea, and launched a number of ballistic and cruise missiles as well as drones, and the engagement lasted several hours.’ The spokesman added that the Houthis would target all US warships in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea as their targets and continue their blockade operations against Israeli ships.

Will the fierce war in the Middle East trigger price increases in Euroland?

Recently, a number of head shipping companies have released European tariff update notices.

Maersk's official website released a price increase notice, from 31 March 2025 onwards to increase the Far East-Mediterranean FAK rate.

MSC announces new FAK from Far East ports (including but not limited to Japanese, Korean and South East Asian ports) to Nordic ports from 1 April 2025 but not later than 14 April 2025.

From all Far East ports (including, but not limited to, ports in Japan, Korea and South East Asia) to Mediterranean (including Western Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean, Adriatic and North Africa) and Black Sea ports from 1 April 2025.

Duffy announces FAK from Asia to Mediterranean and North Africa from all major Asian ports to all Mediterranean and North African ports from 1 April 2025 onwards.

Hapag-Lloyd has announced an increase in the FAK between the Far East and Northern Europe, effective from 1 April 2025. for cargoes shipped in 20‘ and 40’ dry containers (including tall and reefer containers).

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If the military confrontation continues to escalate and the Houthis ‘restart the Red Sea attack’, Europe and the Mediterranean may usher in ‘great turbulence’, reminding the relevant enterprises to pay close attention to market dynamics and flexibly adjust their strategies to cope with potential risks.