Global Maritime Container Turnover Increased by Almost 6%

The aggregate container turnover of the world’s 150 largest ports increased by 5.8% over the period from January to March.

China’s ports, as well as ports of northern Europe and North America appeared to be the main growth drivers. The container turnover of China’s ports increased by 7.3%, while container traffic through 18 largest US and Canadian ports increased by 7.4%. The total volume of transshipment through the ports of northern Europe saw an increase by 6.6%. The most significant growth rate was recorded in Rotterdam, the largest container port of Europe (+8%).

In 2016, the aggregate container turnover of the world's 100 largest ports increased by 1.8%, over 2015, and totaled 555.6 million TEUs. This year the volume of global container shipments may increase by 4.6% (according to Alphaliner´s forecast, previously the forecast was 2-3%).

The expected growth in transshipment volumes may lead to a significant reduction in the excess capacity of the market, which has been observed since 2009. Presently the percentage of idle fleet is 2.5% against 7.8% in the previous year.