7 of the world's 10 busiest container ports are in China

It comes as no surprise that the majority of the largest and busiest seaports in the world are located in China. The ports in China account for 70 percent of the capacity of the top 10 ports worldwide. The busiest ports are determined on the basis of container (TEU) traffic.

For years, Singapore had the biggest seaport in the world. However, Shanghai took over in 2010 and has been the world’s largest and busiest container port ever since. Opened as a treaty port in 1842, Shanghai port is said to have enabled China to become the world’s largest trading country. Over a quarter of China’s annual import and export trade goes though Shanghai International Port, a majority state-owned firm.

The port comprises a deep-sea (East China Sea) and Yangtze river ports, also making the river a viable maritime shipping channel. According to the World Shipping Council data, Shanghai port handled over 37 million TEUs in 2016, increasing its container turnover by 1.6 percent compared to the previous year. Second place in the ranking is occupied by the port of Singapore with a turnover of almost 31 million TEUs and in the third position is Shenzhen port with around 24 million TEUs handled annually, according to the most recent data.