Eurogate first half volume down 10.1%

Eurogate first half volume down 10.1%    Bremen-based terminal operating company Eurogate Group reported a 10.1 percent decline in container volume in the first half of 2009.
   Eurogate's flagship terminals saw volumes decline 20.8 percent to 2.1 million TEUs in Bremerhaven and 17.1 percent to 1.1 million TEUs In Hamburg.
   The company's terminals in Italy, run in conjunction with the Italian Contship Italia Group, saw volume decrease 2.9 percent to 2.7 million TEUs. That was mostly due to growth in volume at the Cagliari International Container Terminal.
   'The month of June was the strongest this year in terms of handling volume,' said Eurogate Chairman Thomas Eckelmann. 'However, there are traditionally stronger and weaker months in container handling. We won't know till the end of 2009 whether or not we can take this as a sign of market recovery. But it will certainly be some time before we are back at the 2008 level.'