TIANJIN, maritime gateway to Beijing and the world's fourth biggest port, posted a 11.1 per cent year-on-year increase in container throughput to 6.5 million TEU in the first half of the year.
The port also posted an 8.1 per cent year-on-year increase in overall cargo volume to 250 million tonnes and handled 60 per cent more international cruise ship business at the same time.
Given current results, Tianjin is hopeful of meeting its annual target of 13.5 million TEU and 525 million tonnes of cargo overall set at the beginning of the year, Xinhua reports.
A Tianjin Port Group official said Tianjin started to accelerate this year with the addition of ship finance and cruise liners as well as securing more growth from cargo and logistics.
Tianjin continues to optimise its container shipping services and expands its international transshipping business and feeder services in the Bohai Rim region. In the first half of year, there were five new container shipping lines launched at the port.
Tianjin also expanded its dry port facilities the first half of year. Its dry port facilities' container handling volume surged 48.4 per cent to 135,000 TEU in this period. It enlarged the dry port at hinterland city of Huinong to a logistics park, and accelerated the implementation of a number of projects such as the marketing centre at Zhangjiakou and the auto logistics facility at its Dongjing Port Area.