PORTS AND TERMINALS BRAZILIAN JOGGING 231 MILLION TONS OF CHARGE IN 2ND QUARTER.
The performance of the Brazilian port sector in the 2nd quarter of 2013 registered a growth of 1,6% in relation to the same period of 2012. The result was leveraged by the movement of agricultural products. In the 2nd quarter of this year, record soybean crops occurred, corn and sugar cane.
According to port handling statistics, Brazilian organized ports and private terminals handled 231,1 million gross tons in the second quarter of 2013, which represented an increase of 3,6 million tons handled in relation to the same period of 2012.
The movement of solid bulk reached the mark of 143,7 million gross tons, representing a growth of 1,4% compared to the same period last year. Regarding liquid bulk, were moved 53,5 millions of tons, value 0,5% above the amount of movement of this type of cargo in the same period of 2012.
In the general cargo segment (loose general cargo + general containerized cargo), were moved 33,9 millions of tons, which represented an increase of 4,2% in relation to the 2nd quarter of 2012. In the loose general cargo segment, were moved 9,7 millions of tons, representing a drop in 15,9% compared to the same period last year.
The movement in the organized ports showed an expressive growth of 9,6% when compared to the 2nd quarter of 2012, while private terminals showed a reduction of 2,6% in the same period. According to the 2nd Quarter Port Performance Bulletin, produced by ANTAQ, this mismatch can be attributed to the list of goods handled by the two types of port facilities. The Bulletin is available, in full, on the Agency's website (www.antaq.gov.br), in “Statistics”, “Newsletters”.
“The ports, for concentrating a large part of the movement of agricultural products, like soy and sugar, accompanied the good performance of handling these products, while private terminals, for having about 70% of its list of goods concentrated in fuels and iron ore, suffered from setbacks in the markets for these products”, assesses ANTAQ's Port Management and Performance manager, Fernando Serra.
Regarding iron ore, main volume handling item in all Brazilian port facilities, there was a drop compared to the same quarter of 2012. In this period, there was a reduction in 9,4% of Brazilian iron ore imports from China, totaling a decrease of 3,6 million tons when comparing the quarters.
“The reduction in the international price of this industrial commodity is pointed out by market analysts as a consequence of the slow recovery of the world economy and, particularly, of the slowdown in the Chinese economy”, points out the ANTAQ Bulletin.
Although there has been a better performance of the organized ports in terms of the tonnage handled, private terminals remain the main responsible for the tonnage of cargo handled in Brazil. In the 2nd quarter of 2013, private terminals accounted for 62,7% of total movement, against 37,3% of organized ports. The explanation lies in the strong participation of iron ore and fuels, mineral oils and other petroleum products when handling these terminals, despite the fall registered in the quarter's movement.
Ten organized ports registered 90% handling this type of installation, with emphasis on Santos (21,4%), big River (25,3%) and São Francisco do Sul (18,3%). The ports of Vila do Conde and Rio de Janeiro had sharp falls (-13,5% e -13,1%, respectively) of its movement in the comparison of the 2nd quarter of 2013 with the same period of 2012.
Regarding containers, movement by organized ports grew 5,7% in terms of TEU (unit equivalent to 20 foot). Among the ten main ports that handled containers in the period, the ports of Santos (19,7%), Itaguaí (13,0%) and Salvador (11,2%) were the ones that presented the highest growth rates compared to the same period of the previous year.
Private terminals, in its turn, moved 144,8 million gross tons in the 2nd quarter of 2013, representing a reduction of 2,6% versus the same period of 2012. The top ten terminals concentrated 71,4% of the loads that were handled in this type of installation, highlighting the CVRD Tubarão terminals, Ponta da Madeira, Admiral Barroso, MBR, Admiral Maximiano da Fonseca and Madre de Deus. The main loads handled by the TUPs were: iron ore, mineral fuels and oils, bauxite, Soy, mineral coal and steel products.
Source: National Waterway Transport Agency.