Maasvlakte II opened

In H1 2024, Rotterdam remained Europe’s largest container port with 2.2% growth, while Antwerp-Bruges stayed second, amid volatile port growth trends.

The Port of Rotterdam has announced that a power outage affecting the Brielle to Hoek van Holland area has not yet disrupted shipping operation.

Due to Red Sea unrest reducing delivery reliability, European shippers are ordering Christmas items from Asia about two months earlier than usual.

The global IT outage affected various sectors, including the Port of Felixstowe, Maersk, Baltic Hub, and certain companies within the Port of Rotterdam.

In the first half of 2024, the Port of Antwerp-Bruges’ cargo throughput increased by 3% to 143.2 million tonnes, while Rotterdam’s remained almost unchanged at 220 million tonnes.

Starting 1 October 2024, all container cargo from Africa, the Middle East, India, and Pakistan arriving at the port of Rotterdam will only be available for release through the port’s Secure Chain system.