304 ships transited Suez Canal last week with total load of 17.5m tonnes

Suez Canal traffic data revealed that 304 ships transited the canal, with a total load of 17.5m tonnes, from 25 to 31 March 2016.

On average, about 43.43 ships transited the canal per day during the past week, with an average load of 2.5m tonnes per day. The average load per ship was about 57,600 tonnes during that period.

Prior to the inauguration of the New Suez Canal in July 2015, there was a daily average of 47 vessels transiting the canal, with an average load of 2.758m tonnes per day.

About 153 ships transited the canal towards the south, with a daily average of 21.86 ships and a total load of 9.1m tonnes of cargo, a daily average of 2.2m tonnes.

The number of vessels that passed through the new channel coming from the east through the southern entrance was 151 vessels, with a daily average of 21.57 vessels, and a total load of 8.97m tonnes, with a daily average of 1.28m tonnes.

Cargo load is the main measure of shipping traffic in the Suez Canal and calculated transit fees.

The Suez Canal recorded revenues of $401.4m in February 2016, compared to $382m in February 2015, which is a 5.8% increase from the previous year.

According to Suez Canal traffic data, 1,300 ships passed through the canal during February 2016 with a total load of 77.716m tones, compared to 1,219 ships with a total load of 73.021m tonnes in February 2015.

The following table shows traffic through the Suez Canal between from 25 to 31 March 2016: