THE container throughput of Chinese ports for the period between January and November of 2021 stood at 259.7 million TEU, representing an increase of 7.6 per cent compared to the same period in 2020.

The total cargo volume handled by the ports amounted to 14,207.6 million tonnes, an increase of 7.2 per cent year on year, according to China's Ministry of Transport.

The Port of Dalian saw the largest year-on-year decrease at 34 per cent, while Beibu Gulf Port reported the biggest growth of 18.6 per cent in container traffic over the corresponding period of 2020.

In terms of container freight rates, the average value of the Ningbo Container Freight index (NCFI) in December was quoting 4,104.3 points, a slight increase of 3.3 per cent to the previous month.

This number, however, reflects a jump of 95.7 per cent compared to December 2020.

On the Ningbo to the North America route, the fundamentals of supply and demand were tight, most of the voyages departing with full loads and the market freight rate remained high, according to Container News.

The average freight rate of a forty-foot general-purpose container from the Port of Ningbo to Los Angeles and New York in December was US$7,676 and US$9,278, respectively, an increase of 3.2 per cent and 4.9 per cent month on month.

The largest month-on-month increase in NCFI in December was in the trade between Ningbo and Singapore and Malaysia, amounting to more than 54.5 per cent compared to November, at 4,203.8 points.