The Montreal Port Authority reports containerised cargo throughput at the St. Lawrence River port fell 18.4% from a year ago to some 5.4m tonnes during the first six months of 2009. Similarly, full and empty container box volume was down 14.6%, from 725,283 to 619,721 teu.

Montreal volumes down

On a more positive note, the port’s grain shipping business jumped 31.1%. Total traffic at the grain terminal, including marine, rail and road transportation, amounted to 1,203,766 tons for the first six months of the year. The port also saw a 22% upswing in its Mediterranean container traffic. Overall, cargo volume was down 15.4% from a year ago to 10.9 million tons.

“The downturns we have experienced in containerised cargo and dry bulk such as iron, zinc and copper are due to difficulties in the manufacturing sectors of Ontario and the American Midwest, which were still being hit by the recession in the first fiscal half year,” explained Sylvie Vachon, the port authority’s newly appointed president and CEO.