Hong Kong Cargo Throughput Up in Q1 2012

Hong Kong Port cargo throughput increased by 3% over a year earlier to 64.5 million tonnes, while outward  cargo volume increased 7% in Q1 2012

The HK Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) has released statistics on vessels, port cargo and containers for the first quarter of 2012.


In the first quarter of 2012, total port cargo throughput increased by 3% over a year earlier to 64.5 million tonnes.  Within this total, inward port cargo recorded virtually no change at 35.9 million tonnes, while outward port cargo increased by 7% to 28.6 million tonnes.


Within port cargo, seaborne cargo increased by 4% over a year earlier to 44.9 million tonnes, while river cargo also rose by 1% to 19.7 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2012.


On a seasonally adjusted quarter-to-quarter comparison, total port cargo throughput decreased by 1% in the first quarter of 2012.  Within this total, inward port cargo decreased by 2%, while outward port cargo recorded virtually no change.  The seasonally adjusted series enables more meaningful shorter-term comparison to be made for discerning possible variations in trends.



In the first quarter of 2012, the port of Hong Kong handled 5.7 million TEUs of containers, representing an increase of 4% over a year earlier.  Within this total, laden containers increased by 7% to 4.9 million TEUs, while empty containers decreased by 8% to 0.8 million TEUs.  Among laden containers, inward containers increased by 6% to 2.4 million TEUs, while outward containers also rose by 7% to 2.4 million TEUs