Port of Antwerp-Bruges handled 202.6 million tons of goods in the first nine months of this year, a decrease of 3.8% compared to the same period last year. The impact of US import duties has also been felt since the summer: exports fell in the third quarter, especially in steel, which was more than a third lower than in the second quarter. However, traffic with the US still grew by 15% in the first nine months.
While general cargo traffic (containers, conventional general cargo and RoRo) still grew by 1.3%, dry and liquid bulk traffic took a heavy hit (-12.8%) due to international market uncertainty and weakened industrial activity. After a strong first half of the year, container traffic slowed down from August (-2.4% in the third quarter), mainly due to the restructuring of the shipping alliances. Nevertheless, a slight growth remains visible over nine months: +1.1% in tonnage and +1.6% in TEU. Congestion in the port decreased due to shorter waiting times and smoother discharge to the hinterland.
Hamburg-Le Havre Range
In the Hamburg-Le Havre Range, Port of Antwerp-Bruges lost 0.7 percentage points of market share to 29.8%, mainly due to capacity restrictions. The ECA project (Extra Container Capacity Antwerp) should provide relief in the long term.
In liquid bulk (-13.5%), the weakness of European chemicals and lower exports of petroleum derivatives to West Africa weighed on the balance. However, LNG imports from the US increased sharply, confirming the port’s role as an energy hub. RoRo also recorded an increase (+3.3%), mainly due to more imports of cars from China, despite European import duties.
