Saudi Ports Authority opens new shipping line linking Dubai’s Jebel Ali with Egypt’s Sokhna through Jeddah Islamic Port

The Saudi Port Authority MAWANI has launched a direct shipping line connecting Dubai’s Jebel Ali to Egypt’s Sokhna through Jeddah Islamic Port.

MAWANI president Saad Alkhalb said the new line is to support the Saudi Vision 2030 to position the Kingdom as a global centre for logistics, according to a statement on Dubai Media office on Wednesday (June 24).

The direct shipping line will connect Jeddah Islamic Port with more ports in the East and the West, Alkhalb added.

MAWANI in December awarded Dubai’s DP World a 30-year Build-Operate-Transfer concession by MAWANI for the management and development of the Jeddah South Container Terminal at the multi-purpose Jeddah Islamic Port. DP World will invest up to $500 million to improve and modernize Jeddah Islamic Port.

The Jebel Ali-Sokhna via Jeddah Islamic Port route is the fourth new shipping line launched by the Saudi authority this year. The most recent new line launched by MAWANI around three weeks ago was across Jeddah Islamic Port and King Abdullah Port at Rabigh via Maersk, the world’s largest container shipping operator.

The announcement of the new shipping line from MAWANI comes as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) downgraded its global growth forecast on Wednesday. IMF in its June outlook said global growth will shrink by 4.9%, which is 1.9 percentage points below its April forecast. The international body also forecasts that global trade will shrink by 11.9%.

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