Port cargo volume up 1.53% in Q1

THE Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said cargo volume at ports it oversees rose 1.53% to 66.96 million metric tons (MMT) in the first quarter, driven by growth in foreign shipments. 

Citing preliminary data, the port regulator said the ports handled 39.49 MMT of foreign cargo and 27.47 MMT of domestic shipments in the three months to March.

Imports accounted for 26.86 MMT or 71.44% of the period’s volume.

Outbound shipments accounted for 14.37 MMT of domestic cargo, while inbound shipments totaled 13.10 MMT.

The PPA recorded 2.13 million twenty-foot equivalent units in container throughput for the first quarter, up 4.41% from a year earlier.

Passenger traffic rose 1.97% to 19.69 million in the first quarter, even in the face of fewer ship calls during the period.

The PPA said ship calls fell to 163,002, down 1.20% from a year earlier.

The PPA reported 124,875 cruise passengers, down 5.17% from a year earlier.

Roll-on/Roll-off (RoRo) traffic rose 8.81% to 3.21 million. 

For 2026, PPA is projecting stronger growth in cargo and passenger traffic, driven by investments in port efficiency. This year, the PPA said it is expecting cargo volume to rise 4.03% to 320.94 million MT, driven mainly by the foreign cargo segment. — Ashley Erika O. Jose