Reckitt says Red Sea attacks having ‘small impact’ on freight rates

By Richa Naidu

LONDON (Reuters) – Reckitt said on Wednesday that attacks on container vessels in the Red Sea had led to “a small impact” on ocean freight rates, and that it was “doing a little more air freighting”.

Houthi militants are attacking container vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, prompting hundreds of ships to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope.

Reckitt CEO Kris Licht said on a call with journalists that the changes did not “meaningfully impact performance”.

“We’re seeing ocean freight timings extended a bit so it just takes longer with the new routes. But there’s no significant impact to our costs from this,” Licht added.

(Reporting by Richa Naidu; editing by Jason Neely)