BPA Targets 23.5 Million TEU Container Throughput at Busan Port Next Year

Busan Port Authority.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Trainee Reporter Hwang Dooyul] Busan Port Authority (BPA) has set the 2022 Busan Port cargo volume target at 23.5 million TEU, a 3.5% increase from the previous year.

Import and export cargo volume is expected to increase by 2.0% to 10.6 million TEU, and transshipment cargo volume by 5.0% to 12.9 million TEU.

Busan Port Authority explained that the cargo volume target was set 1.9% higher than the 2022 forecast of 23.06 million TEU, which was derived from an import-export prediction model and surveys of major shipping companies.

The transshipment cargo volume target was set about 3.3% higher than the 12.488 million TEU forecasted by the top 20 shipping companies handling over 95% of Busan Port's total transshipment cargo.

The import-export cargo volume forecast for next year was estimated using an ARIMA model reflecting the 10-year GDP growth rates of major global regions announced by the International Monetary Fund and the 18-year cargo volume data of trading countries accounting for 80% of Busan Port's total cargo volume.

2022 Busan Port Container Throughput Forecast and Target.

Busan Port Authority stated that despite uncertainties such as the US-China trade dispute, inflation, and the evolving COVID-19 situation, it has set challenging targets to attract cargo volumes exceeding the forecast.

The authority plans various marketing activities based on improvements in port operating conditions and efficiency through the opening of new terminals at Busan New Port, as well as monitoring the global logistics environment.

The 2021 cargo volume performance is expected to achieve the initial target of 22.7 million TEU despite adverse conditions such as the global logistics crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The target represents a 4.0% increase from the previous year, surpassing the average annual growth rate of 2.6% for Busan Port container cargo volume over the past five years.

It was found that processing one TEU of transshipment cargo generates approximately 150,000 KRW in direct and indirect revenue increases for Busan Port. When applied to the 2021 transshipment cargo volume of 12.29 million TEU, this is estimated at about 1.8 trillion KRW.

Busan Port Authority is promoting Busan Port's three major transshipment competitiveness factors?connectivity, stability, and cost & lead time?through multifaceted marketing activities targeting member shipping companies of global shipping alliances, encouraging them to use Busan Port as a transshipment hub.

In the recent Port Connectivity Index released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Busan Port's score rose by 2.8 points compared to the previous year. Research by global shipping and port institutions also showed an increase of 10 regular shipping routes from the previous year.

Busan Port Authority President Kang Junseok said, “In 2022, to maintain transshipment competitiveness, we will steadily promote the development of new container berths at the New Port and continuously seek policies to improve port operation efficiency.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.