THE Port of Hong Kong container volumes increased nine per cent year on year to to 1.81 million TEU in January, a rise mostly attributed to a later than usual Chinese New Year in 2018.

Volumes at the main Kwai Tsing terminals rose 5.9 per cent to 1.41 million TEU while throughput in the non-Kwai Tsing trades soared 22.9 per cent to 400,000 TEU from 325,000 TEU previously.

Throughput in January also rose from the prior three months, which averaged about 1.7 million TEU per month from October to December after the peak of the high season.