Ctg port: Import, export container handling increased in May

Infographics: TBS

Container handling of export and import goods increased at Chattogram Port in May compared to the previous month.

Container handling rose by 24.46% for exports and 10.10% for imports in May, according to the Chattogram Port Authority (CPA).

Additionally, when compared to May last year, container handling this year saw a 22% increase in exports and a 10.36% increase in imports.

According to CPA data, Chattogram Port handled 64,523 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of export containers and 130,000 TEUs of import containers in May 2024. In April 2024, the figures were 48,737 TEUs for exports and around 117,000 TEUs for imports.

Traders and port officials said the dollar crisis is gradually easing, leading to a slight increase in import and export rates compared to last year.

Mohammed Shamsul Azam, director of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), told TBS, "Many garment owners increased their shipments in May due to the upcoming Eid-ul-Adha holidays. That's why export volume is high in May."

Nearly all goods exported through Chattogram Port are loaded at 19 private inland container depots in Chattogram. Additionally, these depots handle the delivery of 38 types of imported products, including food items.

Ruhul Amin Shikder, secretary general of the Bangladesh Inland Container Depot Association, said, "The volume of export products in inland container depots is increasing. In 2024, exports are growing by 10% each month. As a result, the rate of shipment of export goods from the depots has also increased."

Around 92% of the country's import and export trade is done through the Chattogram port. About 98% of the cargo containers transported through all the seaports of Bangladesh are transported through this seaport. About 25% of the goods imported and exported through the port are transported by containers.