Cargo movement at the Port of Santos recorded a 12.7% increase in March, compared to the same period last year. In the last month, cargo 12.24 million tons, surpassing the estimate made by Companhia do Docas do Estado de São Paulo (Codesp), which was 11.2 million tones.
According to Codesp, shipments of the soy complex (grains and meal) were the main drivers of the record. The number is the highest ever recorded in a month at the Port of Santos: 4.58 million tons, 13.2% higher than the previous record recorded in March last year.
Sugar was also a highlight in exports, a 2.5% increase over the previous year, marking 1.09 million tons (in March / 2017 was 1.06 million tons), the 2nd most shipped product in the month. The third product in the ranking is pulp, with 421.5 thousand tons, an increase of 73.7% over March last year (242.5 thousand tons).
In the first quarter of 2018 cargo handling was also a record, with 30.91 million tons, a record result for the period. The growth in relation to the first three months of 2017 was 10.8%.
Shipments reached 21.93 million tonnes, an increase of 11.6% compared to 2017. The soybean complex, which grew by 6.4%, was the most shipped product with 8.07 million tonnes, followed by of sugar (3.05 million tons) and maize (1.41 million tons).