A significant reduction is recorded in a period traditionally characterized by high commercial activity ahead of the holidays.
Market circles attribute the reduction in cargo volume to the fact that maritime normality in the Red Sea has not been fully restored, following the Houthi attacks, resulting in a significant number of ships still avoiding this particular sea route.
At the same time, they report that confusion continues to prevail in the global container market due to the constant changes in American and Chinese tariffs, with the successive announcements, exceptions, and revisions creating uncertainty for importers and affecting the flow of cargo to European ports.
They noted that while traditionally the months of September and October constitute one of the most dynamic periods for cargo movement, as they precede the Christmas holiday demand, this year differed significantly from the norm.
Furthermore, they emphasized that many container ships continue to choose the detour around Africa, bypassing the Suez Canal, resulting in the first ports where they unload cargo being those of Algeria, Spain, and Northern Europe, limiting the volume reaching Piraeus.
According to data from COSCO Shipping Ports, in October 2025, a total of 311 thousand containers were handled from piers II and III of the port of Piraeus compared to 391 thousand in the same month of 2024, recording a 20.5% drop.
On a ten-month level, from January 2025 to October 2025, a total of 3.344 million TEUs were handled, compared to 3.498 million in the corresponding period of 2024, recording a 4.4% drop.
Negative was the picture also in September 2025, during which the monthly handling was set at 318 thousand TEUs, compared to 387 thousand in 2024, recording a 17.9% decrease.
On a nine-month level, from January 2025 to September 2025, a total of 3 million TEUs were handled compared to 3.1 million in the corresponding period of 2024, recording a 2.4% drop.
However, globally, COSCO Shipping Ports presented good performance in the nine months of 2025, with handling at its 37 ports amounting to 97 million TEUs (the basic unit of measurement in container shipping – equivalent to a 20-foot container) compared to 91.7 million TEUs in the same period last year, an increase of 5.6%.
On a monthly level globally, it also presented positive results, with handling in October amounting to 10.3 million TEUs compared to 9.4 million TEUs in the same month last year, an increase of 9.5%.
Regarding handling in China, the terminals in the Southwest and Pearl River regions showed good performance, with an increase of 11.3% and 12.6% respectively on an annual basis.
Moreover, the handling of overseas terminals continued its upward trend, with handling increasing by 18.3% on an annual basis, among which the handling at the Hutchison Laemchabang terminal and the Thai Laemchabang terminal in Thailand which began to be included in the company’s total handling in October.
It is noted that COSCO Shipping Ports recently completed the acquisition of a 12.5% stake in Thai Laemchabang Terminal Co. Ltd. (TLT) and 30% in Hutchison Laemchabang Terminal Ltd. (HLT), for a total consideration of 110 million dollars, as announced on September 17, 2025.
