According to the report, the World Bank forecast a global GDP growth rate of 2.7 percent in the second quarter, the growth rate remaining stable on the whole. International trade activities boomed, the foreign trade environment improved and staple commodity prices stood high, thanks to the overall positive world economy.
The cargo throughput at major ports around the world saw a year-on-year increase of 6.8 percent, significantly picking up compared to the growth in the second quarter of 2016. Container throughput at major ports was up by 7.2 percent year on year, and up by 9.8 percent quarter on quarter, with the growth rate rising again compared to that in the previous quarter.
Dry bulk throughputs at major ports around the world presented divergent trends of growth. The dry bulk throughput at Qinhuangdao, China, grew substantially in the second quarter, doubling that in the same quarter of 2016 with an amount of 78.633 million tons. The growth of dry bulk throughput at major ports in Australia slipped as a result of the throughput of the coal terminal at the Port of Hay Point declining by 82 percent in April.
The crude oil market had brisk supply and demand thanks to the continuous decline in global oil prices, and the liquid bulk throughput at major ports around the world sustained the trend of growth of the previous quarter.
