THE Port of Antwerp's container traffic declined 1.7 per cent to 4.29 million TEU in the first half, but overall cargo throughput increased two per cent to 95.7 million tones year on year.
Antwerp's first half boxes decline 1.7pc, but oil bulk up 33.1pc
THE Port of Antwerp's container traffic declined 1.7 per cent to 4.29 million TEU in the first half, but overall cargo throughput increased two per cent to 95.7 million tones year on year.
Despite the drop in box volume the Scheldt River harbour retained its claim to be second biggest container port in Europe ahead of Hamburg, but behind Rotterdam.
The increase in overall cargo was driven by a 12.1 per cent increase in dry and liquid bulk to 36.5 million tonnes, reported Newark's Journal of Commerce. Dry bulk fell 31 per cent to 7.23 million tonnes, because of stocks running down at other northwestern European ports, but this was more than offset by a 33.1 per cent increase in liquid bulk, mostly crude and oil products, totalling 29.3 million tonnes.
Ro-ro volume at the port fell 3.8 per cent to 2.3 million tonnes, but the number of vehicles handled grew 5.6 per cent to 652,038. Despite a conventional breakbulk declined of 0.4 per cent year on year to 5.35 million tonnes, The Port of Antwerp, Belgium's biggest, also remained Europe's biggest in breakbulk.