São Paulo – The navigation sector transported 7.84 billion tonnes last year, a reduction of 4.5% as against 2008, according to the 2010 edition on the Review of Maritime Transport, disclosed on Tuesday (20) by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad).
According to the organisation, although the international economy is recovering after the financial crisis, this return is "uneven" and slower than in other occasions. Maritime transport figures in 2009 were below those of 2007, and the peak in the sector was in 2008.
To the Unctad, there are signs of recovery of maritime trade, but it should still take some time for it to return to the same level as two years ago.
Last year, however, there was growth of 1.6% in transport of dry bulk, especially iron ore and charcoal. There was a reduction in the freight of grain, fertilizers, bauxite and alumina. Container transport, in turn, dropped 9.7%, to 465.7 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units).
The Unctad warns that the global economy is still living a fragile period and that the future scenery is uncertain. That is a special concern to navigation, as there is great offer of vessels, resulting in depreciated freight values.
The organisation informs that the entry into operation of new vessels is not giving signs of reducing. Last year, there was a record figure in deliveries and in early 2010 the fleet rose even further. That is because, according to the Unctad, orders were placed before the recession.
*Translated by Mark Ament
