Port Hedland in Western Australia, one of [ds_preview]the most important indicator for iron ore shipment statistics, saw record volumes at the end of 2016.
In December 44.5 mill. tons of cargo were handled at the port. According to the Pilbara Port Authority (responsible as well for the other major mineral hub Dampier), this reflects an increase of 17% from the the previous year. Moreover, it was a new monthly throughput record for the port, it was added.
Port of Port Hedland is Australia’s largest export port by annual throughput and the largest bulk minerals port in the world.
Iron ore exports for the month totalled 43.9 mill. tons, an increase of 17% from the same month in 2015. Imports totalled 149,000 tonnes, a decrease of 10,000 tonnes or 6% from the previous year.
By far the biggest share of the exports were destined for China, which shows positive signals for bulker shipments. Especially capesize bulker – the main vessel type of choice on the routes between Australia and China – saw bigger demand recently.
It remains to be seen, whether this is more a snapshot for the dry bulk shipping. China still shows huge hunger for iron ore imports. However, it is not clear in detail, how the Chinese New Year season will effect the business. Two days ago, a recent study already showed that the commodities industry expects improvements for dry bulk markets in 2017.
All in all, Pilbara Ports Authority has delivered a total monthly throughput of 60.5 mill. tonnes for the month of December 2016. This is an increase of 12% from the same month in 2015.
The Port of Dampier recorded a monthly throughput of 15.9Mt, a slight increase from the previous year. Imports totalled 83,000 tonnes, an increase of 10,000 tonnes or 13% from the previous year.
