Shanghai passes 10 million TEU

Since beating out Busan in container volumes last July and becoming the third largest container terminal in the world, Shanghai has now topped the 10 million TEU mark.
Based on data from the Shanghai Port Authority that the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) received Dec. 4, Shanghai handled 10.26 million TEU of cargoes as of the end of November, 34% higher compared to the same period of last year. Shanghai saw 8.61 million TEU last year, taking fourth place in world container traffic. KITA predicted that Shanghai would easily reach 11 million TEU by the end of this year considering current cargoes increase rates. On top of that, Shanghai also hit a one-day handling record with 47,000 TEU in a single day in November, when cargoes for the month hit 1.03 million, 31.2 % over the previous year, explained KITA.
In the mean time, Pusan stayed relatively flat at 8.46 million TEU, showing a comparatively meager increase of 9.2% over the last year for the period to the end of October.
Shanghai operates in 15 international trading routes to Japan, Southeast Asia, the West Coast of North America, South America, Europe, the Mediterranean, the Persian Gulf, Africa, Russia and Austria, with 1,409 vessels calling at the port on monthly basis.
Container terminals in Shanghai have 28 berths right now, much shorter than the demands. However, the city expects to handle 25.4 million TEU by 2020 after completing Yangshan Port and Shimsu Port construction.
Shanghai is scheduled to add 3 million TEU annually after phase 1 construction by 2005 for Major and Minor Yangshan Port Project. The city is constructing container berths for 5,000 - 6,000 TEU vessels in Yangshan Port. Phase 2 dredging construction in Shimsu Port would bring water depth to 12.5 meters, improving its ability to accommodate container vessels.