EUROPE's largest port of Rotterdam saw cargo volumes drop one per cent in the first quarter of 2013 to 109 million tons due to lacklustre European economy.
Rotterdam's first quarter containers up 4pc, but empties dominate
EUROPE's largest port of Rotterdam saw cargo volumes drop one per cent in the first quarter of 2013 to 109 million tons due to lacklustre European economy.
Laden container throughput fell slightly to 30 million tonnes, but increased in units by four per cent to 2.8 million TEU with empties dominating, a trend expected to continue into the second quarter.
Ro-ro traffic was stable as expected at more than four million tonnes, in accordance with the stagnating economy in the United Kingdom. The drop in throughput of other general cargo by 300,000 tonnes to more than one million tonnes can be attributed to the reduced handling of steel slabs and other steel products.
According to the port authority it handled more empty containers during the first three months of the year due to the faltering European economy.
Its final quarter 2012 saw some container volume uplift but still modest at two per cent.
