The Port of Antwerp-Bruges saw a total cargo throughput of 68.7 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2023 – down 4.5% drop on the same period last year. The port authority on Tuesday reported that it is "a consequence of the still complex geopolitical and macroeconomic context."
According to the port, operational challenges at container terminals, such as congestion, are now a lot better than last year. But the port faces a decline in the container segment and some significant shifts in cargo flows. Steel transhipment, for instance, is down 22%, Belga News Agency reports.
"Economic uncertainty and inflation caused a global slowdown in demand for container transport and a cancellation of sailings, especially those from the Far East," the port authority stated. The war in Ukraine has also had an impact. Russia-related traffic in the first three months of 2023 was two-thirds lower than in the same period last year.
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In container transhipment, there was a 6.6% drop in weight and a 5.7% drop in the number of 20-foot containers, compared to the first quarter of 2022. Transhipment volumes of conventional general cargo (goods transported in boxes and not containers) fell 19.8% compared to last year. That first quarter of 2022 was very strong, according to the port, though, due to a "strong post-Covid revival".
The dry bulk segment also experienced a decline (-7.3%), while the liquid bulk segment recorded a slight growth (+0.5%). Roll-on/roll-off traffics the shipping of vehicles, remained at the same level.
