#DublinPortQ3 – Dublin Port Company have published statistics detailing the volumes handled through the port for the third quarter of 2013.
Today's publication is the start of a regular series of statistics which Dublin Port Company will publish every three months.
These statistics will be published within ten days of the end of each quarter and will provide an early indication of trends in imports and exports and trends in tourism volumes at Ireland's biggest port.
The statistics for the third quarter of 2013 show cargo volumes ahead as follows:
• Imports +5.9%
• Exports +4.1%
• Total volume +5.2%
Having seen a slow first quarter (with tonnage behind -2.5% by comparison to 2012), Dublin Port has now had six months of continuous growth in both imports and exports. Cargo volumes after nine months are +3.1% ahead of 2012.
Commenting on today's publication, Eamonn O'Reilly, Chief Executive said:
"Dublin Port is the largest port in the country and handles goods in all cargo modes. Dublin is also the country's largest port for passengers both on ferries and on cruise ships. In a time when there is so much attention to economic trends, we hope that this new series of quarterly statistics will give an early indication of trends across a range of sectors in the economy.
"The growth in port volumes in the last six months is the first significant positive trend we have seen in over three years.
"At 3.1% for the first nine months of 2013, we are running ahead of the 2.5% long-term growth rate we assumed in our Masterplan 2012 to 2040. This performance underpins the necessity for us to plan the provision of additional port capacity in Dublin to support the country's return to economic growth."