More Containers on the Move from Esbjerg

Niels Winther has experienced more sea freight requests for containers, shipped by Grimaldi Lines liner service that regularly calls the biggest port in the West of Denmark.

 
“The last two months requests for sea freight have multiplied. It seems that many of our customers are also experiencing a positive change, with an increase in their exports,” explains Simon Helsing, Sales Manager at Niels Winther, agent for Grimaldi Lines in the port of Esbjerg.

“Shipments have been more frequent from Denmark to other destinations in the Mediterranean such as Greece and Israel, possibly related to the overall recuperation in the global economy. But we have also seen more demand for freight from Europe to Latin America,” says Simon Helsing and continues: “Grimaldi Lines has regular routes to the Mediterranean, South America and West Africa. In this sense, the economic problems in Southern Europe inevitably affected the imports and exports in those countries.”

The macroeconomic indicators seem to confirm these trade fluctuations. According to the United Nations’ statistics on world seaborne trade, developed economies in Europe suffered a decrease in trade from 2007 to 2009, going from 1127 million metric tons of cargo loaded in 2007 to 1008 million metric tons in 2009. The amount of cargo did slightly increase until 2011, reaching 1110 million metric tons of goods loaded in European ports in 2011.

Denmark has gone through a similar situation, with container throughput plummeting in 2009 and slowly increasing the following years.

The United Nations’ statistics on container throughput in the world, show that TEU (Twenty foot Equivalent Unit) amounts in Denmark went from 740,682 in 2008 to 621,546 in 2009.

Figures for 2011 show an improvement with up to 783,156 TEU going through Danish ports.

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Press Release, July 7, 2014