Shipping trade volumes returned to growth in the first half of 2010, according to new figures from the Irish Maritime Development Office (IMDO).
The data show a continued strong performance of export volumes which have risen 5 per cent year-on-year.
Import volumes were down 2 per cent which is largely due to ongoing weak domestic demand. However, the rate of decline in import volumes has eased sharply, IMDO said.
According to the data, lift-on/ lift-off (lo/lo) export trades grew by 5 per cent in the first half of 2010 as against the same period a year ago. Roll-on/Roll-off export traffic was also up 5 per cent per cent on an all-island basis.
Roll-on/roll-off (ro/ro) traffic on an all-Island basis continued to make a steady recovery with an increase of 2 per cent, up to 771,585units. The ro/ro segment remains largely weighted towards services to and from the UK which remains our largest trading partner.
Dry bulk volumes through ports in the Republic increased by 15 per cent for the first six months compared to the same period last year. Shipments in April this year saw the strongest monthly volume of bulk cargoes in over 2 years.
Dry bulk trades recovered some of the record volume losses seen in 2009 with a 15 per cent increase between January and June. Part of this recovery is attributed to stronger domestic demand for grains, fertilizers and other agricultural products, while improved global demand for steel and other ore aggregates also pushed up volume throughput.
Breakbulk volumes through ports in the Republic linked to construction inventories such as steel and timber continued to decline by 11 per cent, which is half the recorded figure for 2009. Nonetheless volume activity in this segment remains at a historically low level.
Liquid bulk volumes such as oil fell by 4 per cent, with lower trans-shipment storage for the US market and other seasonal factors impacting on demand.
