China is conducting military exercises in and around one of the world's busiest shipping lanes after Pelosi's controversial Taiwan visit

China's military exercises around Taiwan could disrupt global shipping.

Sam Yeh/AFP/Getty Image

• Taiwan has advised ships to avoid areas where China is conducting military exercises.
• The drills are taking place after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial visit to Taiwan.
• Areas affected by the drills include the Taiwan Strait, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.

Taiwan has advised ships to avoid areas where China is conducting military exercises — including live drills —  after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial visit to the island.

Port authorities have asked ships to use alternative routes to enter and exit Taiwan's ports in response to China's exercises, according to various notices from the island's Maritime and Port Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications. 

"We call on relevant ships to avoid the areas during the period of the military exercise," said the Taiwanese authority. China said it would hold the exercises around the island from Thursday to Sunday.

Areas affected by the military exercises include zones in the Taiwan Strait, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. Ships from North Asian factories in China, Japan, and South Korea pass through the strait to get to Western markets. About half of the world's container fleet has already sailed through the Taiwan Strait this year, according to a Bloomberg data compilation.

"The Taiwan Strait is one of the most busy straits in the world. So, obviously, if it were to close, it would have a dramatic impact on shipping capacity in the sense that everybody would have to divert around Taiwan and add to the length of voyages and that would absorb a significant capacity," Maersk CEO Soren Skou said in a Wednesday earnings call.

"But I also have to say that there seems to be no suggestion that that's where we are going," said Skou, adding the container shipping giant has "no particular insights" on the military exercises.

It's not just shipping routes that have been affected by China's military exercises. Aviation, too, has been impacted.

China has warned airlines to avoid flying in the airspace around Taiwan, highlighting six "danger zones" to the airlines, according to Bloomberg. Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific told Insider its planes are avoiding the designated airspace zones around Taiwan, adding to longer flying time for some flights.

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