Sea piracy worldwide surged to 266 attacks in the first half this year, up 36% from a year ago, as Somali pirates became bolder and raided more vessels, a global maritime watchdog has said.

Sea attacks worldwide surged 39% to 406 cases, the highest in six years, with Somali pirates' raids on vessels accounting for more than half of the piracy, a maritime watchdog said today.

Pirate attacks worldwide in the first nine months of 2004 dropped to their lowest levels in five years, helped by declines in hotspots such as Indonesia, Bangladesh and Nigeria, a maritime group said today.