Cargo traffic through Spanish ports exceeds 277 million tonnes in the first half of the year
Liquid bulk cargo accelerates its growth with a 4.8% increase driven by fuel demand.
Cargo traffic through Spain’s ports of general interest reached 277,681,553 tonnes up to June 2026, representing an increase of almost one percentage point (+0.8%) compared with the same period of the previous year. The first-half figures point to a more positive trend in traffic performance, despite the ongoing global geopolitical and economic uncertainty.
General cargo recorded a 0.4% decline, with more than 140.33 million tonnes handled. Conventional cargo increased by one percentage point, while containerised cargo fell by 1.1%.
TEU volumes continued to rise, increasing by 2.4% to exceed 9.41 million units during the first six months of the year, supported by solid growth in import-export traffic (+3%) and transhipment containers (+2.1%).
Liquid bulk cargo consolidated its recovery, with 91.38 million tonnes handled, representing a 4.8% year-on-year increase in the January-to-June period, driven by higher volumes of gasoline, fuel oil, biofuels and chemical products. Dry bulk cargo reached a cumulative total of 38.24 million tonnes, down 4%.
Ro-ro traffic slowed its decline, posting a slight decrease of 0.5% and reaching more than 38.08 million tonnes.
The number of merchant vessels calling at Spanish ports declined less sharply than in previous months (-2.7%), reaching 76,115 vessels in the first six months of the year, while gross tonnage decreased by 0.9%.
Passenger traffic exceeded 17.55 million movements up to June, representing a 1.1% decrease compared with the same period in 2025.
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