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Rotterdam box volume up 4.2pc in first 9 months to 9.21 million TEU

ROTTERDAM, Europe's busiest container port, has posted a 4.2 per cent year-on-year increase in container volume to 9.21 million TEU in the first nine months of the year.

But in growth Rotterdam was outperformed by rival Antwerp, which posted a five per cent increase in container traffic in the same period to 6.73 million TEU, noted Newark's Journal of Commerce.

Overall Rotterdam cargo volume grew 0.3 per cent to 333.3 million tonnes, marked by a 4.5 per cent decline in liquid bulk. Meanwhile Antwerpˇs overall tonnage figure grew 3.7 per cent to 148.4 million tonnes.

Deep-sea container volume grew six per cent since March with an uptick from the Americas offsetting lower import volumes from Asia in the third quarter after congestion at two Rotterdam terminals diverted cargo to Antwerp.

Short-sea traffic increased four per cent, driven by a robust British economy, but feeder traffic fell two per cent as Baltic-bound cargo moved to Hamburg.

The Rotterdam Port Authority said it has won back most of the Baltic traffic because of congestion in Hamburg coupled with carriersˇ decisions to switch cargo to the Dutch port ahead of the imminent opening of two new container terminals.

The increased box traffic since March ¨makes it even clearer that we badly need the new terminals on Maasvlakte 2 if we are to achieve further growth,〃 said port authority CEO Allard Castelein.

Ro-ro was up nearly eight per cent at 14.94 million tonnes, and breakbulk cargo jumped 31 per cent to 4.7 million tonnes on higher steel and offshore oil and gas equipment.

Crude oil volume increased two per cent to 71.4 million tonnes and total dry bulk traffic grew 3.4 per cent to 67.5 million tonnes.