Port of Rotterdam posts Q1 throughput figures

The port’s throughput rose 0.2 percent year-over-year in the first quarter of 2016, as an increase in crude oil and oil products was offset by a drop in dry bulk and container volumes.    The Port of Rotterdam’s throughput during the first quarter of 2016 was practically the same as the corresponding period last year, as an increase in crude oil and oil products was offset by a drop in dry bulk and container volumes.
   Overall, throughput for the first quarter of 2016 totaled 116.9 million metric tons, a 0.2 percent year-over-year increase.
   Container volumes during the quarter fell 3.1 percent from the first quarter of 2015 to 31 million metric tons. “The lack of growth in this sector can mainly be attributed to unfavorable economic developments in China, Russia and Brazil,” the port said.
   A total of 57 fully cellular container services that operate outside of North Europe frequent the Port of Rotterdam, in addition to various other fully cellular container services that strictly serve the intra-North Europe trade, according to information from ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting’s Port Dashboard tool.
   Dry bulk volumes dropped 4 percent year-over-year during the quarter to 21 million metric tons. Primary cargo types the port handles in this sector include coal, along with iron ore and scrap. Although coal volumes inched up 2.9 percent from the first quarter of 2015, iron ore and scrap volumes dropped 6.1 percent due to the large amounts of Chinese steel dumped on the European market.
   On a bright note, liquid bulk volumes for the quarter inched up 3.3 percent year-over-year to 58.4 million metric tons. However, growth was hindered by a decline in LNG imports and exports.
   In addition, the breakbulk segment saw volumes rise 2.7 percent from the first quarter of 2015 to 6.6 million metric tons.