Container throughput up in the third quarter
A ray of hope for the Port of Hamburg: container throughput, which is important for Europe's third-largest seaport, increased again in the third quarter. From July to September, 2 million 20-foot standard containers (TEU) crossed the quayside, 2.4 percent more than a year earlier. However, due to the severe slump in the first half of the year, the bottom line for the first nine months is still down 7.4 percent at 5.84 million TEU. These figures were announced by the port's marketing organization (HHM) on Wednesday. However, Asian traffic, which is very important for Hamburg, increased by 7.8 percent in the third quarter of 2023 compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
Overall, companies in the port industry in Hamburg handled 86.6 million tons of seaborne cargo from January to September 2023, 5.6 percent less than a year ago. "At 27.4 million tons and a decline of 0.3 percent, handling of bulk cargo remained at almost the same level."
The result for the third quarter shows "that container throughput in the Port of Hamburg is in a recovery process," summarized HHM CEO Axel Mattern. "With regard to the ports of the North Range, we will be the only port that can present a positive result for container throughput in the third quarter. This will enable us to gain market share." In port jargon, the so-called North Range comprises the important seaports on the North Sea, including the two major Hamburg competitors Rotterdam and Antwerp.
Mattern did not want to make a forecast for the year as a whole. The extent to which the trend in the third quarter will influence the annual result "cannot yet be estimated, as the continuing challenging geopolitical conditions and the further downward revision of Germany's expected economic growth for 2023 do not allow any concrete statements to be made".
The port sees the fact that more ships have been calling at the Hanseatic city again recently as a positive sign. "In the first nine months, over 3,500 ships with capacity for container cargo were guests." "This corresponds to an increase of 1.8 percent compared to the same period last year." The number of very large ships in particular has increased. "The number of calls by megamax container ships with up to over 24,000 TEU also continued to rise." A total of 204 ships in this currently largest category of container ships called at the Port of Hamburg, 17.9 percent more than in the same period last year.
The increase in container throughput in the third quarter might alleviate potential issues during the upcoming holiday shipping season, considering the rise in cargo ship traffic. However, persistent traffic congestion in the port area could still pose challenges for efficient shipping operations.
Despite the recovery in container throughput, the Port of Hamburg might face challenges in meeting its annual target due to ongoing geopolitical uncertainties and revised economic growth expectations for Germany in 2023.
Source: www.dpa.com
