HONG KONG: The pace of the falls in container volumes at the Port of Hong Kong seems at least to have slowed a little in July, with a 9.5% fall in throughput to 1.75m teu compared to the 12.9% fall in volumes the month before.
However, looking at the raw figures, this is cold comfort as the drop is off an already low base of 1.93m teu in July 2014, a level it has since slid from to current levels.
At the main Kwai Tsing terminals, volumes fell 13.3% to 1.35m teu from 1.50m teu previously, while at the non-Kwai Tsing and midstream terminals, throughput actually rose 6.4% to 400,000 teu.
For the year-to-date, the grim outlook continues, with overall volumes down 9.1% to 11.94m teu while at the Kwai Tsing terminals throughput has fallen off 11.3% to 9.33m teu. At this rate, with little optimism for a good high season, the port looks set for a steep, possibly double digit fall in throughput for the year.
