Total throughput at the port of Rotterdam fell by 1.4 percent in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same of period last year.
The Dutch gateway reported that in the first three months of this year, throughput was 110.1 million tonnes, down from 111.7 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2023. The decline is mainly due to less throughput of coal, crude oil and oil products. Iron ore, scrap and LNG cargoes increased, while container throughput was also on the rise with a 3.3 percent uptick.
Boudewijn Siemons, ceo and interim chief operating officer at the Port of Rotterdam Authority, said: “The throughput figures show limited imports of raw materials and exports of finished products. This tells us that European industrial production is still suffering from high energy prices and low demand from the biggest declining sectors such as construction and the processing and automotive industries.”
Total throughput of the breakbulk market segment (ro-ro and other breakbulk) decreased by 1.9 percent to 7.8 million tonnes. Ro-ro throughput fell by 3.8 percent to 6.3 million tonnes compared to the first quarter last year, as volumes to the UK still show no recovery. Other breakbulk volumes rose 7.4 percent to 1.5 million tonnes.
