Container traffic at the Port of Santos set fresh records in May, with monthly throughput topping 500,000 TEUs and year-to-date volume surpassing 2.4 million TEUs, the Santos Port Authority said. TEU, or twenty-foot equivalent unit, is the standard measure used in container shipping to count cargo volumes.
“These figures confirm what we said when we took office: the Port of Santos can handle more cargo as preparations move forward for the STS 10 auction. The goal is a model that responds to market demand while also serving Brazil’s interests and delivering the best outcome for the port and the Baixada Santista region,” said Anderson Pomini, president of the Santos Port Authority.
Tecon 10 or STS 10 is the planned new container terminal at Santos, expected to be one of Brazil’s most important port concession projects.
According to Datamar data, container imports and exports rose 4.2% in the year to date (January-April 2026). The chart below shows the port’s monthly container export and import volumes:
Exports & Imports | Port of Santos | Jan 2023 – Apr 2026 | TEUs
Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)
Overall cargo throughput at Santos also reached a record in the first five months of the year, totaling 75.65 million tonnes. The figure was up 4.7% from 2025 and 3.9% above the previous record, set in 2024, when the port handled 72.84 million tonnes over the same period.
The main drivers of growth remained the soybean complex, including soybeans and soybean meal, which grew 5.5% to more than 25.72 million tonnes, and sugar, which rose 10.2% from 2025 to nearly 7 million tonnes.
Outbound cargo totaled 55.95 million tonnes, up 4.3% from 2025. Inbound cargo reached 19.70 million tonnes, a 5.7% increase.
May performance
Cargo throughput in May fell 1.7% from the same month in 2025, totaling 16.37 million tonnes. The decline was mainly due to a normalization in pulp volumes. In May 2025, pulp handling had been unusually strong, rising 45.5% from the previous year. This year, pulp volumes fell 34.8%.
The drop in breakbulk cargo, which includes pulp, was one of the reasons outbound shipments declined in May. Export flows totaled 12.26 million tonnes, down 4.1% from 12.79 million tonnes in May 2025. Sugar shipments also fell sharply, down 13.9%, while soybean complex volumes slipped 0.6%.
Inbound cargo, by contrast, rose 6.2% from May 2025 to 4.11 million tonnes. Fertilizers were the main highlight, increasing 19.4% to 2.94 million tonnes, compared with 2.46 million tonnes in the same month last year.
Source: Porto de Santos
