​The figure represents a decrease of 3.3% compared to 2022 (561,7 million)

Freight traffic through ports of general interest closes 2023 with more than 543 million tonnes

• More than 39 million passengers passed through Spanish ports, 18.9% more than in 2022
• Cruise passengers surpass the record figure of 2019, with a volume of 12 million movements

26-01-2024 (State Ports Public Body ). General interest ports moved 543,307,746 tons in 2023, according to the provisional closure, which is 3.3% less than in 2022 (561,7 million). The year has been marked by a slowdown in traffic, due to various international tensions, such as the war between Russia and Ukraine, plus the situation of violence in the Middle East, which especially in the last period of the year impacted maritime trade as the passage of the Red Sea was affected, which is causing route changes, delays and also rising costs.

 General merchandise dropped by 2.9% compared to the previous year to

 262.6 million tonnes, due to the decrease in containerised transport (-4.7%) - a moderate contraction after the steepest falls recorded in September (-8.2%) or October (-7%) - to reach 178.7 million tonnes. However, the figure for December 2023 is higher than for the same month in 2022 (14.6 million tonnes compared to 14.2), following the trend that began in November reflecting a slight recovery of the merchandise in this presentation. 

In TEUs, 2023 closed with a decrease of 4.5%, to 16,379,280, although 1.34 million TEUs were moved in December, above the figure for December 2022 (1.29 million), with increases registered in that month both in transit and as domestic entry-exit and foreign entry-exit.

On the other hand,  the volume of conventional general merchandise increased by 1.2% to 83.9 million. The good performance of vehicles, which, as goods, increased by 19.6% to 3.8 million, largely explains this increase.

Solid bulk recorded a fall of 3.7% last year down to 90.4 million tonnes, despite the sharp increase in some goods, such as cereals (+33%). Liquid bulk traffic decreased by 3.7% to 175 million tonnes.

Ro-ro traffic grew by 1.3% to 71.8 million tonnes.

The number of merchant ships through Spanish ports increased by 4.5% in 2023 , totalling 164,215 units, with gross tonnage growing by 6%.

For 2024, forecasts continue to predict global tensions, so it is very important to continue working together to face the challenges and promote the role of Spanish ports as a driver of economic, social and environmental development.

The best news come from passenger traffic, which confirms its strong rise in 2023. In total, 39.2 million people passed through Spanish ports, 18.9% more than in 2022.

As expected, the movement of cruise passengers through Spanish ports in 2023 exceeded the absolute record set in 2019 (10.6 million), already exceeding 12 million, which is 46.8% more than in 2022, confirming the leadership of Barcelona and the Balearic Islands in this sector, but with increases in almost all ports, with a special highlight on the strong momentum of Cadiz (+72.4%) and the Canary Islands ports.

For more information: https://www.puertos.es/es-es/estadisticas/Paginas/estadistica_mensual.aspx