The Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) recorded a 7.82 per cent increase in cargo throughput tonnage during September, reaching 28.1 million tonnes compared to 26.1 million tonnes in the same month of 2023.
Last month, the total container throughput through ports managed by Mawani was 673,124 TEU, marking an 8.1 per cent decrease compared to 732,319 TEU last year.
However, there were positive numbers in exported containers, which recorded an increase of 9 per cent, reaching 255,606 TEU compared to 234,663 TEU in the same period in 2023. The number of imported containers also rose by 18 per cent, reaching 258,007 TEU compared to 217,933 TEU last year.
The total general cargo amounted to 975,406 tonnes, solid bulk cargo to 4.5 million tonnes , and liquid bulk cargo to 15.3 million tonnes.
Transshipment containers decreased by 42.3 per cent, reaching 159,511 TEU compared to 279,723 TEU in 2023. Shipping traffic also decreased by 5.2 per cent, reaching 988 ships compared to 1,042 ships in 2023.
Earlier this summer, Mawani recorded 231.7 points in the Liner Shipping Connectivity Index , according to the report of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
More recently, Mawani and A.P. Moller-Maersk (Maersk) announced the launch of the Middle East’s biggest Maersk Logistics Park at Jeddah Islamic Port.