Port of Vancouver thrives in first half 2017 amid higher box, grain volumes

The western Canadian port handled 69 million metric tons of cargo during the first half of the year, up 3.9 percent from the corresponding 2016 period thanks to higher container volumes and strong overseas demand for Canadian grain products.    The Port of Vancouver in western Canada experienced a boost in cargo volumes during the first half of 2017, fueled by mid-year records in container shipments and bulk grain, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said Tuesday.
   The port handled 69 million metric tons of cargo during the first half of 2017, a 3.9 percent increase from the corresponding 2016 period.
   Container volumes rose 9.6 percent year-over-year to 1.6 million TEUs, as global demand increased for Canadian products shipped in containers, while Canadian demand rose for consumer and manufacturing goods from Asia, the port authority said.
   The Port of Vancouver is called by 16 fully cellular container services connecting it to regions outside of North America, the majority of which are dedicated to trade between Asia and the West Coast of North America, according to data from ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting‘s Port Dashboard tool. THE Alliance’s weekly dedicated Asia-West Coast of North America PN3 loop deploys the largest containerships calling the port, with an average vessel capacity of 11,795 TEUs.
   Bulk grain volumes at the port surged 12.9 percent year-over-year to 12.5 million metric tons for the first half of 2017, thanks to strong overseas demand for Canadian grain products.
   Bulk dry cargo volumes increased 4.9 percent from the first half of 2016 to 43.6 million metric tons.
   “Large increases in specialty crop exports (up 55 percent), wheat (up 5 percent), and coal (up 7 percent) offset decreases in sulfur (down 15 percent), bulk forest products (down 4 percent) and potash (down 3 percent),” the port authority said.
   However, bulk liquid tonnage fell 3 percent from the first half of last year to 4.5 million metric tons due to an 8 percent drop in petroleum product cargo, which was higher last year in response to the Alberta wildfires.
   Breakbulk volumes slipped 1.3 percent year-over-year for the first half of 2017, mainly due to a 3.6 percent drop in domestic traffic.
   Meanwhile, automobile shipments, which totaled 218,000 units, ticked up 3.1 percent from the first half of 2016.