UAE – Mubasher: DP World saw an 8.8% decline in the number of shipping containers to 16.7 million during the second quarter (Q2) of 2020, compared to 18.3 million in the year-ago period, according to Reuters.
The drop in the number of containers is attributed to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which led to lockdown in cities, suspension of factories, and disruption of shipments and global supply chains.
The UAE-based global port operator recorded the biggest quarterly decrease in the Asia Pacific and Indian subcontinent region.
During the first six months of the year, DP World's container volumes reached 33.8 million, down 5.3% when compared to the corresponding period of 2019.
The chairman of DP World, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, said in a statement: "Overall, we are encouraged that our business has performed better than expected and, while the outlook is still uncertain, we remain positive on the medium- to long-term fundamentals of the industry."
