Piraeus Port keeps container volumes up despite Red Sea disruptions

Container traffic at the Port of Piraeus remained resilient during the first half of 2026 despite the ongoing Red Sea crisis and renewed security threats from Yemen’s Houthi movement. Vessels continue to avoid the Red Sea, opting for the longer route around the Cape of Good Hope, yet the Piraeus Container Terminal handled 366,900 TEUs in June, a 3.6% year‑on‑year decline, and 1.995 million TEUs from January to June, down 2.9%.

COSCO Shipping Ports reported robust growth across its global network, with container throughput rising 6% to 10.5 million TEUs in June and an 8.2% increase to 61.3 million TEUs in the first six months of 2026. In parallel, China launched a new five‑year (2026‑2030) port modernization plan approved by the State Council, targeting upgrades to customs, digital systems and multimodal connections at major gateway ports such as Tianjin, Dalian, Ningbo, Qingdao and Guangzhou.