Singapore box volumes plunge in February

http://www.lloydslist.com/ll/news/viewArticle.htm?articleId=20017628312&src=rss

SINGAPORE, the world’s largest container port, saw box volumes plunge 20% in February.

The top global transhipment hub handled 1.85m teu in February, down 19.8% compared to the same month in 2008, according to figures released by the Maritime & Port Authority of Singapore.

The number of containers handled in February in Singapore was 6% down on January, and the figures reflect a huge slump that has been seen in the container trades globally.

Singapore’s container volumes focus mainly on the Asian regional trades and the key Asia – Europe trade lane, on which it is a key transhipment hub for Asian cargo. It is estimated that around one-third of the cranes at PSA Singapore’s terminals are idle at the current time.

PSA, which handles the vast majority of Singapore’s container cargo, reported a volume of 3.72m teu for the first two months of 2009, down 19.7% year-on-year.

Total cargo handled at the port in February was 35.2m tonnes, down 12.8% on the same month a year ago.