Business Report :
Export container handling at the Chattogram Port increased by 23.40% or 18,292 TEUs in August compared to the previous month when it faced disruptions amid the unrest centring the recent student protests and internet shutdown.
Export goods’ container handling in August stood at 78,146 TEUs (Twenty-foot equivalent unit), higher than 59,854 TEUs in July.
Import container handling, however, remained almost the same as July, according to data released by the port authorities.
In August, the port handled over 1,14,708 lakh TEUs of import containers. In July, it was 1,14,455 TEUs, according to Chittagong Port Authority data.
Port officials said export activities were hampered in July due to the internet shutdown during the recent Anti-Discrimination Student Movement protests. As a result, loading of export containers from the depot was halted for several days.
Data shows that export container handling decreased by 9,808 TEU in July compared to June. As the situation improved in August, the volume of export container handling increased.
“Other export products, including garments made from different factories of the country, could not come to depots in Chattogram due to political instability. The goods which were in the export container depot could not be shipped due to internet shutdown,” Ruhul Amin Sikder, secretary general of Container Depot Owners’ Association, said
“These containers, which were stuck in July, were shipped in August. As a result, container handling increased by 18,292 TEUs in August compared to July,” he added.
According to industry insiders, containers are loaded at 19 private depots in Chattogram before the export goods are shipped. Then the ship is taken to the port as per schedule.
Chattogram port, the main trade gateway of the country, handled 6,5461 TEUs of export containers and 1,05,075 TEUs of import containers in August last year.
The port handled a total of 59,592 TEUs of export containers and 1,13,485 import containers in July 2023, and 7,5391 TEU of export containers and 1,03,755 TEU of import containers in June 2023.
