Jebel Ali Port has secured a spot on the British “Lloyd’s” list of the world’s top 10 ports, recording an impressive growth in cargo handling of 7.5% for 2024.
Global container ports have demonstrated notable resilience amidst geopolitical uncertainties and fluctuations in trade dynamics.
The increase in cargo volume at Jebel Ali is attributed to robust growth in trade from Asia and the Indian subcontinent. The port processed 15.54 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) compared to 14.47 million TEUs in 2023, reflecting a 7.5% increase.
The report indicates that the total number of containers handled by the top 100 ports exceeded 743.6 million TEUs, marking an 8.1% rise from 2023 and reversing the recent trend of stagnation.
Asia maintained its dominance, accounting for over 40% of global container traffic solely through Chinese ports.
North American terminals, particularly along the eastern and western coasts of the United States and the Gulf Coast, experienced significant growth driven by strong consumer demand and strategic inventory replenishment in response to rising trade tensions with China. Emerging markets like India, Vietnam, and Turkey benefited from supply chain reorganization and regional trade agreements.
China reinforced its leadership position in shipping, trade, and global supply chains, occupying all spots in the top ten ports by cargo volume, with six of them located in mainland China. Shanghai led the list with a handling volume of 51.5 million TEUs, followed by Singapore with 41.13 million TEUs. Ningbo Zhoushan secured third place with 39.3 million TEUs, while Shenzhen came in fourth with 33.4 million TEUs.
In fifth place was Qingdao, handling 30.9 million TEUs, a growth from 28.8 million TEUs, representing an increase of 7.3%.
The northern Chinese port has shown remarkable growth in the last two years, although maintaining this trend may be challenging due to expected trade volatility this year.
Guangzhou, the largest domestic container port in China, followed in sixth place, adapting effectively to the rapidly changing global trade conditions and handling 26.07 million TEUs, up from 25.4 million TEUs, marking a growth of 2.6%.
South Korea’s Port of Busan entered the top ten list, with a 8.8% increase in transshipment volume to 13.5 million TEUs, handling 24.4 million TEUs compared to 23 million TEUs, which is a 6% increase.
Tianjin Port, positioned in what is expected to be China’s future economic powerhouse, ranked eighth, with plans to expand its annual capacity to 35 million TEUs by 2035. It handled 23.3 million TEUs, a 5% increase from 22.2 million TEUs.
The ninth position was occupied by Jebel Ali Port in Dubai, which managed 15.54 million TEUs, compared to 14.7 million TEUs, reflecting a 7.5% yearly growth.
Rounding out the top ten is Port Klang in Malaysia, which had another record-breaking year due to geopolitical factors and regional trade within Asia, finally breaking into the top ten with 14.64 million TEUs compared to 14 million TEUs, showing an annual growth of 4%.
Top 10 Global Ports by Cargo Volume
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Port/Country (Million TEUs)
1. Shanghai/China (51.5)
2. Singapore/Singapore (41.13)
3. Ningbo Zhoushan/China (39.3)
4. Shenzhen/China (33.4)
5. Qingdao/China (30.9)
6. Guangzhou/China (26.07)
7. Busan/South Korea (24.4)
8. Tianjin/China (23.3)
9. Jebel Ali/UAE (15.5)
10. Port Klang/Malaysia (14.6)