As a result of the dock strike at APM Terminals' facility, which has been going since May 2016, Gothenburg's container traffic contracted to a volume level last seen in 2001.
Other freight sectors, on the contrary, noted increases over this year's first half. Ro-ro traffic rose by 7.0% year-on-year to 291 thou. cargo units, finished vehicle logistics by 13.2% yoy to 137 thou. new cars, while the turnover of liquids advanced by 7.1% yoy to 12.0 mln tn.
The number of ferry and cruise passengers served by Gothenburg port went up, too, by 0.1% yoy to 701 thou. travellers.
"We're suffering from what can be called a historic lowering of container volumes, a result of the continuing dock strike that has been going on for over a year now. The consequences for Swedish trade are huge, as several lines connecting us to important markets have been negatively affected, including direct routes which are of the essence for imports and exports. A lot of goods have shifted from sea onto land, investments have failed to come, while job opportunities have been wasted as well," Magnus Kårestedt, CEO, the Port of Gothenburg, commented.