The world’s largest port, the Port of Shanghai, has seen virtually flat-growth, as TEU throughput remained flat throughout June, 2015, despite total volumes passing the 18 million mark during January-June, 2015, according to the Journal of Commerce.

The Shanghai International Shipping Institute previously released its global port data for 2014, where the total growth for major Asian ports had in fact declined by around 1.8%.

The Port of Shanghai’s June volumes are said to be around 2.5% less than those seen in May, 2015, with total June throughput reaching just over 3 million TEU, as a result of the slowing demand at many overseas markets.

Commenting on overseas growth, Goldman Sachs were reported as saying: “Our global macro research team expects European consumer spending growth to remain steady over 2015 but pick-up in 2016, which is in line with our assumptions of a slightly higher volume growth in 2015, and further volume growth in 2016.”

Moody’s Investor Service has said that China’s ports will need to spend around US$10 billion in the next two years if they are to remain competitive.

However, China’s mega-ports could still see mega-growth between now and 2020, with an average annual growth rate of around 6%. China is also planning four super container hubs that aim to accommodate this growth in volumes.
(Source : www.porttechnology.org)