Port figures for first quarter of 2009 down on last year

As expected since the beginning of this year, the port of Antwerp ended the first quarter of 2009 with negative growth figures. The total volume of goods handled in January, February and March was 19.3% down overall on the same period last year. On the other hand, the absolute growth in freight volume during the first three months was significantly higher.

The total volume of freight handled in the port of Antwerp during the first three months was 37,301,039 tonnes. This compares with 46,198,546 tonnes for the same period in 2008. The container volume fell by 16.6% to 20,255,766 tonnes, down from 24,292,041 tonnes last year. In terms of standard containers (twenty-foot equivalent units) it came to 1,736,648 TEU, or 16.3% less than the 2,075,050 TEU in 2008.

From January to March 2,996,551 tonnes of conventional/breakbulk freight was loaded or unloaded in the port, a drop of 30.7%. Imports of steel, wood and granite in particular were sharply down on 2008. Ro/ro for its part fell by 31.4% to 793,067 tonnes. The number of cars handled fell more or less proportionately, by 32% to 160,888 vehicles. Car imports especially were down, by 45.8%.

Of the various commodities, liquid bulk experienced the lowest drop, with the volume of 9,303,663 tonnes being only 4.1% lower than last year. Dry bulk on the other hand was well down, by 41.2% to 3,951,992 tonnes. The corresponding figure in 2008 was 6,724,643 tonnes. One of the reasons for the decline is the shutdown of the ArcelorMittal blast furnaces.

During the first quarter of 2009 the number of ships calling at the port of Antwerp was 3,408, a decrease of 16.3%. The gross register tonnage for its part was down by 7.3% to 66.2 million GRT.

Overall, the contraction is in line with the prognosis put forward at the beginning of this year by Port Authority CEO Eddy Bruyninckx in his presentation of the figures for 2008 as a whole. He forecast a general decline of around 15% in the total volume, and stated that the container volume could be around 20% lower. According to him we cannot yet say on the basis of the current figures whether the situation has bottomed out.

The Port Authority is convinced that further investment in the port is still the best response to the continuing crisis: exceptional circumstances call for exceptional measures. In this spirit, work will start in collaboration with the Flemish Government on construction of a second sea lock in the Waasland port (i.e. the port area on the left bank of the Scheldt). As demonstrated once again by the arrival of the giant container carrier MSC Beatrice with a capacity of 14.000 TEU last week, this lock is absolutely essential to maintain good accessibility for the Western Scheldt.

Source: Antwerp Port Authority