Busan Port, South Korea's busiest harbor, expects freight volumes to drop as much as 14 percent this year on the global recession and competition from cheaper Chinese ports.
"Cargo has been hard hit by the economic slump since late last year," Roh Ki Tae, chief executive officer of Busan Port Authority, told reporters in the city today at an event to mark the opening of a new Hanjin Shipping Co. terminal. The decline may slow from the third quarter, he added.
The Hanjin terminal is at a new port opened by Busan as the city upgrades services and offers facilities for larger ships to win back transshipment traffic from China. Global sea-cargo traffic has plunged this year as U.S. and European consumers pare spending on Asian-made goods amid rising job concerns.
Hanjin's new terminal has three berths each able to hold a container vessel with a capacity of as much as 12,000 20-foot boxes, according to a company statement.
"Cargo has been hard hit by the economic slump since late last year," Roh Ki Tae, chief executive officer of Busan Port Authority, told reporters in the city today at an event to mark the opening of a new Hanjin Shipping Co. terminal. The decline may slow from the third quarter, he added.
The Hanjin terminal is at a new port opened by Busan as the city upgrades services and offers facilities for larger ships to win back transshipment traffic from China. Global sea-cargo traffic has plunged this year as U.S. and European consumers pare spending on Asian-made goods amid rising job concerns.
Hanjin's new terminal has three berths each able to hold a container vessel with a capacity of as much as 12,000 20-foot boxes, according to a company statement.