News
The Japan Maritime Center (JMC) recently unveiled statistics on container traded between Asia and Europe in December 2018, showing that exports from Asia to Europe increased 2.2% to 1,506,161 TEUs, marking a year-on-year improvement for the fifth consecutive month. On an annual scale, they picked up 2.2% to 16,209,472 TEUs in 2018, setting a new yearly record. Imports from Europe to Asia, on the other hand, fell 3.4% to 670,565 TEUs in December, suffering a year-on-year decrease for two back-to-back months. They shrank on an annual basis as well, going down 2.3% to 7,712,419 TEUs, but quantitatively, they were still the second-largest volume after the record set in 2017.
Looking at containers exported from Asia to Europe in 2018 by origin, the JMC statistics, compiled from data provided by Container Trades Statistics Ltd. of the U.K., indicated that those from China improved 1.5% to 11,559,799 TEUs. Exports from South Korea and Japan were also brisk, growing 3.2% to 1,118,308 TEUs and 9% to 465,132 TEUs, respectively. But those from Taiwan were not, sinking 0.1% to 384,210 TEUs. Shipments from ASEAN countries swelled 4.8% to 2,461,293 TEUs in total, indicating that those from almost all of them achieved year-on-year growth. Specifically, those from Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia were robust, going up 6.4% to 746,235 TEUs, 3.6% to 541,681 TEUs and 1.3% to 405,031 TEUs, respectively.
