Cargo traffic through the ports increases by 3.6%, surpassing 515.7 million tons until November

Solid bulk cargo (+10.6%) and liquids (+6.2%) continue to maintain the growth pace of port traffic.

December 23, 2022 (Public Body Ports of the State). The total traffic of the 46 general interest ports of the State during the first eleven months of the year reached 515,753,859 tons, which represented an increase of 3.6% compared to the same period in 2021. Despite the slowdown in port traffic growth in recent months, the difference in traffic volume with 2019, the year when the historical record was reached, continues to decrease, with a difference of only 4.6 million tons, very close to reaching pre-pandemic levels.

The global economic slowdown and disruptions in logistics and distribution chains have affected port traffic, causing a decrease of -1.2% in general cargo traffic and -5.5% in transit container cargo. Nevertheless, everything indicates that the closing of the 2022 fiscal year will reach figures similar to those achieved in 2019, which was a record year for traffic.

By the method of presentation, in the cumulative total of the eleven months of 2022, general cargo exceeded 250 million tons (-1.2%), with increases in wood and cork (+11%). The decrease in containerized cargo movement (-4.6%) continues to be offset by the increase in conventional cargo traffic (+7.5%).

Liquid bulk cargo increased by 6.2% comparing the cumulative total until November 2022 with the same period in 2021, totaling 165.7 million tons, thanks to the significant increase in natural gas (+44%) with 20.4 million tons, as well as crude oil (+11.8%) with 58.4 million tons or gasoline (+11.3%).

Finally, the third major group of goods, corresponding to solid bulk cargo, increased by 10.6% with 85.8 million tons accumulated by November this year, highlighting the strong increase in coal (+62.5%) with 17.3 million tons and cereals and their flours (+42.4%) with 14.7 million tons.

Ro-ro traffic, which exceeds by almost 9% the volume reached in 2019, grew by 9.7% compared to the previous year, with 65.5 million tons.

Containers recorded a movement of 15.8 million TEUs in these eleven months of 2022, with a decrease of 2.5% compared to 2021, mainly due to the -5.5% fall in transit containers, despite the good performance of national traffic (+4.7%) compared to the previous year.

Passenger traffic continues to recover at a spectacular rate, with a growth of 87.8% compared to the same period of the previous year, surpassing 30.6 million passengers from both regular lines and cruises this month, thanks to the opening this year of the Strait of Gibraltar Operation and the recovery of cruise traffic, which experienced a growth of 294.8%, with 7.5 million cruisers.

Finally, the number of vessels transiting through the ports reached 144,935 units, with an increase of +13.5% compared to 2021.