380 ships transit Suez Canal with 20.8m tonnes of cargo

By Mohamed Ahmed

Suez Canal traffic data for 9-15 October showed that 380 ships with total cargo of 20.831m tonnes transited the canal, compared to 316 ships the week before with total cargo of 20.9m tonnes, marking an increase of 13.7%.

A total of 13,649 ships transited the canal since the beginning of the year to 8 October, with a daily average of 54 ships.

The average number of ships transiting the canal also reached 54 per day last week, with an average cargo of 2.975m tonnes per day, compared to a daily average of 45 ships with cargo of 2.62m tonnes the week before.

The average weight of cargo per ship reached 54,818 tonnes last week compared to 57,800 tonnes.

The largest cargo last week reached 200,607 tonnes, on the Barzan container ship travelling from England to Malaysia.

Traffic growth in the Suez Canal and transit fees are calculated based on the weight of cargo travelling along the canal.

Around 191 ships transited the canal from the west, entering from the Port Said entrance in the North, with a daily average of 27 ships, compared to an average number of 144 per day the week before.

Around 179 ships transited the new canal from the southern entrance, with a daily average of 27 ships, compared to a daily average of 173 the week before.

In July, a month before the inauguration of the new Suez Canal, 1,411 ships transited with 82.537m tonnes of cargo, with a daily average of 45.6 ships. The daily average of cargo reached 2.662m tonnes, in addition to a daily average of 58,500 tonnes per ship.

A table illustrating traffic in Suez Canal from 9-15 October (Cargo in million tonnes)