The port of Shanghai was the largest container port in 2023, handling containers with a capacity of over 49 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU). In 2023, eight out of the ten busiest container ports were located in Asia.
The world's largest container ports
The busiest container ports in Asia include Shanghai, Singapore, and Hong Kong. In the United States, the neighboring ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach form the largest container hub in the country. The cities of Rotterdam, Hamburg, and Antwerp are home to the largest ports in Europe. In terms of value, seaborne trade carried by container ships is the most important category of waterborne freight, and container handling is one of the key sources of revenue produced by the operation and management of a port. Intermodal containers usually have a capacity of one or two twenty-foot equivalent units, a standard unit of measure which is often being abbreviated to TEU.
The world's largest container terminals
Singapore’s PSA International is ranked among the world’s leading marine terminal operators, followed by Hutchison Port Holdings, which is headquartered in the British Virgin Islands. PSA International operates several ports around the world, generating almost 4.7 billion Singapore dollars in revenue in 2021.
The largest container ports worldwide in 2023, based on throughput
(in million TEUs)
The twenty-foot equivalent unit (often TEU or teu) is the shipping industry’s standard unit of measure. Throughput is defined as the total volume of cargo handled. The values have been rounded.
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Port of Antwerp. (July 17, 2024). The largest container ports worldwide in 2023, based on throughput (in million TEUs) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved December 19, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/264171/turnover-volume-of-the-largest-container-ports-worldwide/
Port of Antwerp. "The largest container ports worldwide in 2023, based on throughput (in million TEUs)." Chart. July 17, 2024. Statista. Accessed December 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/264171/turnover-volume-of-the-largest-container-ports-worldwide/
Port of Antwerp. (2024). The largest container ports worldwide in 2023, based on throughput (in million TEUs). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: December 19, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/264171/turnover-volume-of-the-largest-container-ports-worldwide/
Port of Antwerp. "The Largest Container Ports Worldwide in 2023, Based on Throughput (in Million Teus)." Statista, Statista Inc., 17 Jul 2024, https://www.statista.com/statistics/264171/turnover-volume-of-the-largest-container-ports-worldwide/
Port of Antwerp, The largest container ports worldwide in 2023, based on throughput (in million TEUs) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/264171/turnover-volume-of-the-largest-container-ports-worldwide/ (last visited December 19, 2024)
The largest container ports worldwide in 2023, based on throughput (in million TEUs) [Graph], Port of Antwerp, July 17, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/264171/turnover-volume-of-the-largest-container-ports-worldwide/