The ongoing bottleneck at the Panama Canal is causing ships to sail entire continents out of the way, eitherby going around the southern tips of Africa and South America or through the Suez Canal, Bloomberg reports. Detours through alternate routes add thousands of miles and up to three weeks to ships’ journeys at sea, the outlet writes. However, some would rather go around the cape or through the Suez rather than wait in line, which can cost shippers mns.

Detours = hiked prices for customers: Shipping companies are hiking their costs to make up for these extra expenses, which will have a trickle-down effect on consumers in the long run, ING Research Economist Inga Fechner said, according to the outlet. Container ship operators are looking for alternative routes to avoid the canal for 2024, Transporeon Chief Revenue Officer Nikolay Pargov said.

Background:The other options shippers face are paying mns to jump the queue or wait in line for days or weeks, and the situation is expected to get even worse as Panama enters its dry season in the next coming months, Bloomberg explains.

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