Container throughput is falling
Port of Hamburg handles fewer goods
02/20/2023 12:59 p.m
Fewer goods were handled in the Port of Hamburg last year. While turnover was still positive in the first half of the year, things went downhill in the second half of the year. In addition, the ranking of the countries from which the containers came has been rearranged.
The war in Ukraine and the supply chain problems caused by the corona lockdowns in China have bothered the Port of Hamburg. Last year, 8.3 million standard containers (TEU) were moved along the quay walls of the Hanseatic city, a good five percent less than in the previous year, according to the Port of Hamburg Marketing association.
While turnover was still positive in the first half of the year, things went downhill in the second half of the year. In addition to the already disrupted supply chains, there were also the dock workers’ strikes and the weaker economy. Container throughput fell particularly sharply in the final quarter, down 12.3 percent. The marketing association explained that the reasons for this were the increased energy costs and high inventories in the industry.
Among the countries from which the containers that were handled in Hamburg came, the ranking was rearranged: Russia, which was fourth before the war in Ukraine, slipped to 27th place because of the sanctions. On the other hand, handling with Poland increased by almost a quarter to 294,000 TEU. Poland swapped places with Russia. The turnover developed similarly with Finland, which came in sixth. China remained by far the frontrunner with almost 2.5 million standard containers (minus 3.8 percent). The USA followed in second place with 605,000 TEU (minus 2.1 percent). Overall, seaborne cargo handling in Germany’s largest port fell by 6.8 percent to almost 120 million tons.
Port of Hamburg Marketing does not dare to make a forecast for 2023. “We hope that the global economy will pick up again. This will also support and increase throughput in the Port of Hamburg,” explained CEO Axel Mattern.