The Port of Marseilles boosted the first-quarter container throughput by 17% from Q1,2009 and is set for further gains with the launch of new services to North America and Asia, Journal of Commerce reports.
France's largest port handled 245,029 TEUs in Q1,10 vs 208,664 TEUs in Q1,09. March box volumes jumped 15 percent to 92,935 TEUs, thanks to the launched Med-Gulf Express service to the United States and Mexico and the extension of CSAV's Asia-Eastern Mediterranean service to the southern French port.
The volume consolidates Marseilles’ ranking as France's second largest box hub after Le Havre. However, the increase was extraordinarily large because of the reduction in traffic in the first quarter of 2009 as a result of strikes.
Total cargo increased 3 percent to 21.46 million metric tons in the first three months from 20.88 million metric tons a year ago although the growth slowed just 1 percent in March to 7.99 million metric tons.
Conventional and breakbulk cargo surged 52 percent in the first quarter to 527,000 metric tons from 346,000 metric tons in the 2009 period with growth accelerating in March when traffic was 69 percent higher at 219,000 metric tons against 129,000 metric tons.
The rebound in breakbulk traffic was driven exclusively by higher steel shipments following the re-activation of an idled ArcelorMittal mill.
Steel cargoes jumped 73 percent in the quarter to 490,000 metric tons from 284,000 metric tons a year ago and were up 110 percent in March at 198,000 metric tons. Other conventional cargoes, by contrast, slumped 41 percent to 37,000 metric tons from 62,000 metric tons in the first three months of 2009.