KLANG: The Transport Ministry has not yet received any negative feedback from the export-import industry regarding the rising costs of shipping as a result of the Red Sea conflict.
Its minister Anthony Loke said despite that, it will continue to monitor the situation and that it is manageable for the time being.
"So far we have not received any direct negative feedback from our export-import industry players.
"We are still monitoring the situation and I think it's manageable for the time being."
He added that talks with industry players will be done from time to time for mitigation efforts in regards to the situation.
"We will talk to them from time to time to see what kind of mitigation we need to help them," he told reporters at a press conference after the inauguration of Costa Serena Malaysia's first international cruise homeport at Port Klang Cruise Terminal, here, today.
Loke also hopes that the situation in the Red Sea is temporary as efforts to provide better security are implemented by certain countries.
"We hope this is just for the short term because the situation is very strict in the Red Sea.
"And I think there are efforts from other countries to try to have better security control there," he said.
Earlier, it was reported that the Malaysia Shipowners' Association (Masa) executive committee member, Captain Cheah Sin Bi, said the conflict in the Red Sea would lead to higher operational costs, especially for goods from Europe that use the route.
Cheah, however, said the crisis in the Red Sea would not have a direct impact on the nation's ports or the local operators.
This comes after the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) had warned Malaysian exporters and importers that freight rates are likely to triple in 2024, compared to 2023, due to the Red Sea shipping crisis.
FMM had told Malaysian exporters and importers to refine their business strategies to safeguard their supply chains and reduce delays to better meet customer demands to reduce the impact of the escalating situation.
This follows after the escalation of security issues stemming from attacks by the Iran-allied Houthi militia on ships in the region since November, leading to several of the world's largest shipping firms diverting vessels away from the route to a much longer route around the southern tip of Africa.