LISBON: The amount of goods moved through Portuguese ports was a record-breaking 84 million tons or so in 2015, 7.9 percent more than the year before, with particular thanks to Sines where throughput was up 17.6 percent.
Portugal’s Mobility and Transport Authority (AMT) said the 6.2 million ton increase was due to a 12.5 percent increase in imports and a 6.5 percent rise in exports, while short-sea shipping between domestic ports fell by 7.9 percent.
The port of Sines, in the south of the country, was responsible for the largest number of the goods movements, with 49.2 percent of the total, followed by Leixões, near Porto, (20.8 percent) and Lisbon (12.6 percent). “This behaviour was due to the market segments such as the importation of crude oil, coal and natural gas (through Sines and Leixões) and grain imports (in Lisbon)”, the AMT said.
