In 2018, the Port of Tarragona is all about the living

In 2018, the Port of Tarragona it’s showing a descend on its container traffic in comparison to 2017.

The container activity of the Port of Tarragona fell down again in the first semester of 2018 in comparison to the same period of 2017, with -1.3% less movement. July has been the month with the lowest activity in relation to the previous year, with -10.8% less activity. These results, however, resonate with those of 2017, where the total of the annual activity (liquid bulk, salt, cars …) was very positive as a whole, beating previous records, as published by the Port of Tarragona Authority.

Liquid bulk, as is the case of crude oil, have shown a growth of +9% in these first months of 2018. However, this doesn’t apply to petroleum products, that show a descend of -34.4%, or chemical products with -17.4%.

This year also highlights the growth of solid bulks, a non-existent traffic in 2017, with the traffic of peas from Eastern Europe. Likewise, the general non-contained cargo also sees a positive evolution, with +29% growth, as well as common salt (+128.8%), paper pulp (+47.4%) and iron and steel products (+62.7%).

On its side, agro-food products have shown a positive evolution of +62.5%, with fruits and vegetables being the products with the highest growth.

However, the major increases seen, have been in live cattle with +171.4% and in cruise passengers, who have experienced a fast-paced growth since 2017, with a growth of +282.3% compared to the previous year. In 2018, the Port of Tarragona has already seen the visit of 51,630 cruise passengers in the first seven months of the year, +137.5% in relation to the first quarter of 2017, and it is expected to continue to rise in the coming months, clearly showing a positive trend.

In 2017, the Port of Tarragona broke the record of highest number of cruise passengers.