Sri Lanka, May 1 -- War risk insurance premiums for vessels operating in the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf have surged by up to 50 percent with extreme cases reaching as high as three percent of vessel value per voyage due to recent escalations in the ongoing Middle East conflict, noted Women's Chamber of Industry and Commerce Sri Lanka (WCIC) Chairperson Gayani de Alwis.

Moreover, according to de Alwis, geopolitical tensions around the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz are forcing global shipping lines to reroute, significantly increasing freight and fuel costs and driving up global freight rates.

Higher freight rates have resulted in a direct and severe impact on imports of energy and bulk commodities.

For Sri Lanka, this means an imme...