Opinion | How Gaza war leads to Red Sea crisis witness China's run at the Paris Olympic tennis games

By Augustus K. Yeung

Does war necessarily destroy? Yes and no. Yes, it does as is the case of destruction in Gaza. But no, if it happens to industries in logistics. Sadly, but surprisingly, war can bring a silver lining.

In this case, the slaughter in Gaza has captured the attention of the world primarily because of its unexpected cruelty that happens to children, women and innocent civilians.

And the attention falls on how politics in the Middle East is being run, and how seriously and sarcastically the U.S.— as a self-styled "world leader" – has failed the world – because of its inability to curb the atrocity and barbarism of Benjamin Netanyahu whose country has all along been fed by U.S. financial aids and relied on military supports.

Taking Gaza as an example, as the ferocity of fire is being fueled in the Gaza strip, the economic effect of this one-sided war on other parts of the world's industries is being neglected. People overall felt for the helpless and powerless Palestinians, but failed to realize the impact of this war can spill over to other parts of the world, disrupting the supply chain.

Since last November, Yemen's Houthis (which is on the side of the Palestinians and Iranians) have attacked and intercepted merchant ships in the Red Sea in response to the unjust and unholy war in Gaza, leading to several international shipping giants suspending their routes through the waterway.

Instead, many have opted to use the Cape of Good Hope as a route, increasing demand for new ships and containers for global maritime transport.

"The Red Sea crisis has led to longer journeys and reduced idle capacity," said Gary Ng, a senior economist with Natixis. "There is also structural demand for new ships to replace the old fleet and meet new green regulations."

Where do these new ships come from? Which country builds them?

"China's exports of ships in the first half of the year reached their highest level since the pandemic – help by supply chair disruptions from the Red Sea crisis and global fleet renewals, while exports of containers hit the highest since the country's reopening in late 2022." One recent article on shipping in the South China Morning Post reported.

Container exports were up 155 per cent year on year in June, with the value of exports jumping by 85.97 per cent, according to the nation's customs data.

In the first half, China exported U.S.$6.8 billion in value via containers, a rise of 71.67 per cent year on year, while the volume of exports also went up by 113.16 per cent.

Another major increase was seen in China's ship exports. In the first six months of 2024, the country completed vessels with a cumulative 25.02 million dead-weight tons of cargo capacity, representing 55 percent of the global total, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on July 16.

China also took 54.22 million deadweight tons of new orders and had 171.55 million deadweight tons in orders on hand, accounting for 74.7 per cent and 58.9 per cent, respectively, of the world's market share.

Ship exports hit US$20.7 billion in the first half of the year, an increase of 85.2 per cent year-on-year and the highest level over the first half of any year since the start of the pandemic. Container exports, meanwhile, have reached a new peak after a sustained surge in 2021. (Source: SCMP)

The disruption from Red Sea crisis and renewal of ageing global fleet push first-half figures to new highs since Covid and set stage for further growth for the Chinese.

However, as the logistics costs have increased significantly, the costs of food items and home appliances, for example, can also be increasing, leading to world-wide inflation and affecting general quality of life.

Concomitantly, the Chinese team of athletes are striking gold and silver in the 2024 Paris Olympics, especially in tennis games, both singles and doubles.

Can these small acts in great tennis competitions be a sign of the times, or a tipping point, quietly signaling the rise of the tides in the East and the waning of waves in the West?

Afterall, the United States and its Western allies have been waging wars for decades in various parts of the world. And wars are a spectacular way of wasting a nation's resources for so many war adventures, and for so long.

I wonder, we may be witnessing a structural decline starting with America, spreading across the world to Britain and probably to the European community, except for Germany which has always been industrious despite going to world-wars once and twice.

While I bath in the glory of China, my motherland, I feel sad witnessing the sunset in the West, which has always been bewitching to me as a foreign student who for years had been studying in and living with the culture of the great West.

Getting gold is good for China, as it is a sign of a nation being further lifted from poverty. But seeing other nations or regions get poor, or approaching poverty is sad.

China is doing great as it has been successfully playing the role of a mediator in the Mideast, once and now may be twice or thrice if it can help to stop the atrocity in Gaza, and/or put an end to the Russia-Ukraine war in Eastern Europe.

Why can't our world leaders cooperate for the sake of humanity? In the spirit of Paris Olympics, I pause for an answer!

 

The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.

To contact the writer, please direct email:AugustusKYeung@ymail.com

Read more articles by Augustus K. Yeung:

Opinion | Debunking Biden's anti-China foreign policy

Opinion | Trump as a spent force VS Harris, a Black feminine snowball

Opinion | Initiated by Xi and Macron, Summer Olympics in Paris is for world peace

Opinion | France's China engagement will lead Europe in its 'rebel' with a noble cause