Following a slow first half of 2016, port throughput rebounded in the second half of the year pushing the global container volumes up by an estimated 1.8% during the year, compared to 1.4% seen in 2015, according to Alphaliner.
The fourth quarter of 2016 was saw a particularly strong volume growth of 4%, compared to a negative growth of –0.6% in the first quarter, Alphaliner’s sample of quarterly data collected for the 30 largest container ports in the world shows.
“Preliminary 2016 throughput data for the Top 100 container ports is in line with global growth estimates, with aggregate volumes at these ports growing by 1.8% last year to reach 555.6 million TEU,” according to Alphaliner.
Stronger volume growth in 2016 was led by several ports that reported double digit gains, including Port Kelang, Colombo, Manila, Piraeus, Mundra, Salalah, Inchon, Fuzhou, Chittagong, Barcelona, Bandar Abbas and Cai Mep.
However, these gains were mitigated by volume losses at Dubai, Tanjung Pelepas, Jakarta, Felixstowe, Santos, Port Said, Balboa, Ambarli, Durban, Cartagena, Manzanillo (Pan), Dammam and Zeebrugge.