International Cargo Seaport: Port of Shanghai

Located close to the Yangzi River, the Port of Shanghai has long maintained its reputation as the busiest seaport with the fastest-growing economy in the world. It has a long history and fascinating information that can further expand your knowledge about this particular industry. Please continue reading to find it out!

About the Port of Shanghai

Covering the area up to 3.700km2, this port is managed by the Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG; also coded CN SGH). The organization offers a variety of port-related services like cargo transportation and container management to consumers all around the world. In 2019, for instance, it processed up to 44 million TEU containers and 540 million tonnes of consignment.

Over a quarter of the country’s imported and exported cargo and almost 99 percent of Shanghai’s international trade are here. The most commonly handled materials here include machinery and equipment, steel, petroleum, metal-ore, and coal.

History

Since its establishment in 1842, the Port of Shanghai has grown to be one of China’s most reputable international commerce gateways as a result of its vast access to Chinese waters and the world’s oceans.

The early years were considered highly successful for the port, although the late 1940s saw its trade plummeting dramatically when the communists took power. Shanghai’s whole economy thus began to deteriorate.

The cargo throughput did not increase much for the next few years until 1991, whose period marked regulation changes about international trade. A massive infrastructure was later conducted until 2005, enabling more additional ships and rising traffic over time. It eventually grew to become the world’s largest cargo port like how we know it today.

More about the Port of Shanghai

Besides ascending the throne as the king of China’s port, the Port of Shanghai also has more impressive achievements. Based on the new datasets released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) on the 7th of August 2019, the port placed first in their rating of the world’s best-connected ports for that year.

Based on the Xinhua-Baltic Exchange International Shipping Center Development Index (ISCDI), the city itself has also risen to the best three shipping centers for the first time. The overall value of the city’s exports and imports reached a new high of 3.48 trillion yuan (US$545 billion) in 2020, 2.3 percent higher from 2019.

Like the other industries affected by the pandemic, the port has also undergone challenging moments. The Party Committee Secretary of Shanghai Li Qiang stated that the international shipping facility is being built to a “new height” in Shanghai. The city will seize new chances and challenges in the maritime sector, strengthen international shipping collaboration, and support the shipping industry’s healthy growth.

We hope the information about the Port of Shanghai above gives you more exciting information to know about it! Feel free to check out our other port-related articles as well, and let us know what you think about it.