The 3 Busiest Container Ports in the World - Storage Container

Every year, thousands of container ships travel across the seas carrying all kinds of loads. Because of this, there are ports exclusively for this kind of ships, and many of them are strategically located in order to maximize efficiency. In this sense, these ports are the economic epicenter in the areas in which they are located; and, consequently, they have not only an effect on the local economic activities but also on its cultural identity. Hence, it is of high relevance to know which container ports are the busiest in the world. At GLKS, the shipping and storage containers for sale in Chicagoland, we know that this information may come in handy for your future business finances and operations. [Related topic: storage containers for sale in Chicago]

Before going into detail, it is imperative to clarify how container ports’ capacity and, therefore, traffic are measured. There are different units used to measure this, but for the sake of simplicity and standardization, the TEU is the most common one. TEU or twenty-foot equivalent unit is based on 20ft containers. One TEU equals one 20ft container. Although this measure is not always exact, it is the ones used globally for measuring container ports’ capacity and traffic.

Now that it is clear how capacity and traffic are measured, let’s take a look at the three busiest container ports in the world.

1. Port of Shanghai: The port of Shanghai has been the largest and busiest container port since 2010. In 2017, it handled more than 40 million TEUs. It is located in Shanghai, China, more specifically at the mouth of the Yangtze River, covering an area of 3,619.6km² (2,249.1 mi²), and its three main terminals are Wusongkou, Waigaoqiao, and Yangshan. It is said that it has been operating since the fifth century. It was open for international trade in 1842.
2. Port of Singapore: The second busiest port container in the world handled almost 34 million TEUs in 2017. In terms of connectivity, it connects to over 600 ports in 123 countries. Because of Singapore’s lack of natural resources and land, the port serves as one of the most important economic factors in the country. It was the world’s busiest container port until 2010 when it was surpassed by the port of Shanghai.
3. Port of Shenzhen: Composed by several ports across 260 kilometers (161 miles) in the coastline of Shenzhen, China, this port is considered to be one of the fastest growing container ports in the world, besides the fact of being the third busiest one. It handled more than 25 million TEUs in 2017. In this port, there are about 131 international routes that have been launched by the 389 companies that operate from it.

We sincerely hope this summary has given you a good insight into the container shipping industry and its ports. Remember to contact Great Lakes Kwik Space when looking for storage containers for sale in Chicago and Chicagoland by calling us at 800-966-1016.