Cargo Volumes At Indian Ports Rise For Second Straight Month

Cargo handled by Indian ports rose for the second straight month in January, albeit at a slower pace, as volumes of liquid cargo fell.

Indian ports handled 620 lakh tonnes of cargo last month, a rise of 2.5 percent over January 2019, according to a Goldman Sachs report. That compares with a 6 percent increase in December 2019 at 609.6 lakh tonnes, the fastest pace in 14 months.

Liquid cargo, which contributes nearly 36 percent to total cargo volumes, fell 4.4 percent year-on-year to 222 lakh tonnes in January.

Coal volumes, however, rebounded after seven straight months of decline. While thermal coal volumes grew at 4.5 percent year-on-year, coking coal volumes fell 4.7 percent, the report showed. Container volumes, too, snapped their two months of decline to grow at 3.5 percent over last year to 129 lakh tonnes. Container and coal volumes together constitute 42 percent of total cargo volumes.

• Iron ore volumes rose 75 percent year-on-year—the fastest pace in at least 10 months—to 56 lakh tonnes in January. That led to a 400-basis-point increase in its contribution to overall volumes.
• Fertilizers saw a growth of 3.4 percent to 17 lakh tonnes.
• Growth in miscellaneous volumes, according to Goldman Sachs, has been volatile. It declined 8 percent year-on-year despite a favourable base.
• In the April-January period, total cargo volumes grew 1.2 percent year-on-year 5,857.3 lakh tonnes.

“While 2019 represents a favourable base to support growth for the rest of financial year 2020, the risks related to recent development in China could impact port volumes,” Goldman Sachs said.