The Port of Duisburg, Germany, the world's biggest inland port, handled more than one million TEUs for the first time in 2008, outpacing growth at its larger rivals in the Le Havre-Hamburg port range. The German port's box traffic rose 12 percent from a year ago to just over one million TEUs as a 22 percent surge in rail container traffic more than compensated for a slight decrease in inland shipping and barge traffic, Duisport, the port's operating company, said.
Duisburg's double-digit growth contrasted with flat 2008 traffic in Rotterdam, Europe's top box hub, and a 1.5 percent decrease at second ranked Hamburg and was double the six percent growth at third-placed Antwerp.
Overall cargo traffic fell, however to 54.5 million tonnes from 55.1 million tonnes in 2007, as the global economy slowed in the second half of the year, hitting key cargoes, notably steel.
Container volumes contracted in the final quarter of the year and are reportedly down by between 15 percent and 20 percent in the first three months of 2009.
"During the last seven years we have seen double-digit combined road/rail transportation growth each year. This trend will be broken for the fist time in 2009," said Duisport chief executive Erich Staake.
"We are confident, though, that we will do better than the market average this year," Staake added.
Duisport boosted earnings before tax and interest to $11.9 million from $10 million in 2007 and revenue gained nine percent to a record $188 million. Net income rose 11 percent to $33.8 million.
Duisport invested $65 million last year, mostly on expanding railroad capacity and completing construction of a tri-modal road-rail-barge cargo terminal, Logport 11, which began operations at the beginning of the year.
Duisburg's double-digit growth contrasted with flat 2008 traffic in Rotterdam, Europe's top box hub, and a 1.5 percent decrease at second ranked Hamburg and was double the six percent growth at third-placed Antwerp.
Overall cargo traffic fell, however to 54.5 million tonnes from 55.1 million tonnes in 2007, as the global economy slowed in the second half of the year, hitting key cargoes, notably steel.
Container volumes contracted in the final quarter of the year and are reportedly down by between 15 percent and 20 percent in the first three months of 2009.
"During the last seven years we have seen double-digit combined road/rail transportation growth each year. This trend will be broken for the fist time in 2009," said Duisport chief executive Erich Staake.
"We are confident, though, that we will do better than the market average this year," Staake added.
Duisport boosted earnings before tax and interest to $11.9 million from $10 million in 2007 and revenue gained nine percent to a record $188 million. Net income rose 11 percent to $33.8 million.
Duisport invested $65 million last year, mostly on expanding railroad capacity and completing construction of a tri-modal road-rail-barge cargo terminal, Logport 11, which began operations at the beginning of the year.