DESPITE the challenging economic situation, Philippine cargo volume registered a modest hike in the third quarter of 2022, according to the latest data from the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), reports the Manila Bulletin.
The country's cargo traffic totalled 70.61 million tonnes from July to September, up 14.05 per cent compared to the 61.91 tonnes handled in the same period last year.
On the other hand, foreign cargo throughput handled was 45.61 tonnes, 21.46 per cent higher than the comparative period.
Import volume was at 25.43 tonnes while export traffic totalled 20.17 tonnes.
Domestic volume reached 25 tonnes, 2.62 per cent higher than the volume processed in the same period last year.
Container traffic increased 7.97 per cent to 2.03 million TEU in the third quarter, from 1.88 million TEU in the comparative period.
Domestic boxes handled at the ports posted 0.86 per cent growth to 759,804 TEU while foreign boxes registered an increase of 11.4 per cent to 1.27 million TEU versus 1.14 million TEU handled in the same period in 2021.
Of the total foreign boxes, import volume contributed 650,106 TEU, up 17.59 per cent, while export boxes grew to 629,381 TEU, up 813.32 per cent.
Shipcalls went up 15.5 per cent to 119,977 in the third quarter from 103,845 in 2021. Domestic ship calls stood at 116,940 and foreign ship calls, 3,047.