Half year growth for Rotterdam

Container throughput was 2% up at 63m tonnes, although in numbers, container throughput fell by close on 2% to 5.9m teu. Incoming container cargo was down slightly by 0.9%, but there was marked growth of 5% in outgoing trade. Imports from Asia fell due to the stagnating European economy.

Exports to Asia and the USA did well thanks to Chinese demand for quality products and the slight recovery in the American economy, supported by the lower Euro compared to the US dollar.

Short-sea transport increased by 3%, thanks to the Mediterranean and Scandinavia/Baltic regions, while the British/Irish market declined. The number of empty containers leaving the port fell by almost 20%.