Singapore August box volumes up 8.2%

Singapore port moved 2.6m teu in August, up 8.2% compared to the same month in 2010.

The data showed a 0.5% decline compared to July, in line with the July to August pattern seen last year.

The strong volume was in line with data from the port of Shanghai, which showed a 6.2% on year gain and confirms reports from container lines that utilisation rates remain high.

For the first eight months of the year Singapore saw container throughput of 19.8m teu, up 4.8% from 18.9m teu during the same period in 2010.

Total cargo reached 45.8m tonnes in August, up 1% on month and up 7.3% on year.

Sales of bunker fuel in Singapore rose 5% month on month and 12% year on year to 3.8m tonnes in August.

For the January to August period, 28.6m tonnes of bunker fuel were sold, up 6.3% on year.

The port handled a total of 1,952 tankers, 1,677 container vessels and 1,043 bulk carriers in August.