Calculated in containers, Valenciaport handled 393,838 units in March, 11.5% more. Of these, full export containers grew by 8.46% and import containers by 28.56%. Those in transit fell by 4.14%, according to the company's release.
The acumulative figure for the year (January-March) still has room for recovery: 18.35 million tonnes passed through Valenciaport; 6.36% less than in the first quarter of 2022. And the same applies to containers: between January and March Valenciaport handled 1,115,382 TEUs (6.1 metre containers), a decrease of 9.92%
In the first quarter of this year, the dynamism in the movement of automobiles continued with an increase of 9.4% and rail traffic grew by 17.5%
By sectors, those with the greatest increase in activity are the energy sector (+10.41%), agri-food (+6.34%), and vehicles and transport elements (+5.84%)
China is Valenciaport’s main trading partner, closely followed by the United States, although the countries with the highest growth in traffic with Valenciaport are India (+37.5%), Mexico (+30%), Egypt (+25%) and Bangladesh (+25%)
11.5% more containers and 11.5% more tons. The same number of increases for all types of cargo. This has been the increase in goods traffic registered by Valenciaport during the month of March; increases that confirm the change in trend that the provisional figures showed; and which, if they are maintained in the coming months, would confirm that the commercial flow will already be in the recovery phase of the curve.
Specifically, according to the Statistical Bulletin of the Port Authority of Valencia (PAV), a total of 393,838 TEUs (standard containers of 20 feet or 6.1 metres) were moved in March, which represents 11.5% more than in the same month of the previous year. It is also 9.8% more than in February this year and 14.5% more than in January.
This positive trend can be seen in the number of containers full of cargo (export), which rose by 9.14% in March compared to 2022, and those full of unloading (import), which increased by 28.56%, a symptom that the production centres are operational and the client countries and suppliers of Spain are acquiring and/or selling products. On the other hand, containers used for transhipment fell by 4.14%, while empty containers (those required by the Castellón tile industry) increased by 35.82%.
Calculated by weight, a total of 6,706,713 tonnes of goods were handled, 11.5% more than in March 2022. The number of vehicles handled in the ports of Valencia and Sagunto has also been positive, growing by 17.43%.
About the quarter, the traffic (18.35 million tonnes) continues to show the trend of previous months and reflects a fall of 6.36%. However, liquid bulk increased by 11%, solid bulk by 10.5% and non-containerised goods by 5.6%.
Between January and March, Valenciaport handled 1,115,382 containers, 9.92% less than the same period the previous year. Of these, full export containers fell by 12.3%, import containers rose by 1.8%, and transit containers fell by 19.9%. Empty cars fell by 1.35%.
The latest data from the Statistical Bulletin reflect the dynamism in the movement of automobiles. Thus, between January and March, the docks of Valencia and Sagunto have handled 160,509 units, 9.4% more than last year. In this line, ro-ro traffic (short sea shipping services for roll-on/roll-off cargo) transported 3,254,994 tonnes, 8.36% more.
This trend is also seen in the traffic of goods arriving or leaving the Port of Valencia by rail, which in the first quarter of the year grew by 17.5% (measured in tonnes), in line with the increase in TEUs moved by train, which rose by 13.2%.
Regarding passengers, in the first quarter of the year, the total number of people on regular lines with the Balearic Islands and Algeria was 123,806, while cruise passengers numbered 31,311.
By sectors, vehicles and elements of transport are the one with the greatest weight in Valenciaport, with 2.82 million tonnes and an increase of 5.84% compared to the first quarter of 2021. This is followed by agricultural, livestock and foodstuffs with 2.19 million tonnes (+6.34%), other goods with 1.9 million tonnes (+3.5%), construction materials with 1.47 million tonnes (-20%) and energy with 1.3 million tonnes (+10.4%).
Focusing on the traffic in tonnes, Italy continues to be Valenciaport’s main trading partner with 1,784,456 tonnes moved in the last month (-3%), followed by the USA with 1,401,645 (-39.8%) and China with 1,392,720 (-7.2%). India achieved a growth of 34.46% and Mexico 22.79%.
China continues to be Valencia’s main partner with 119,667 containers, followed by the USA with 84,819 and Turkey with 49,899. The countries with the most notable growth are India with an increase of 37.5%, Mexico with 30% and Egypt and Bangladesh with 25%, respectively.