The most important results:

• The Container Throughput Index of the RWI and the Institute of Shipping Economics and Logistics (ISL) has surprisingly risen to a new high of 139.0 according to the current flash estimate in July.

• At the same time, the June value has been corrected upwards from 137.1 to 138.0. The main reason for this were the revised figures of some Chinese ports.

• The trade conflict between the U.S. and China has not left any deep marks on container handling yet. This could be related to the fact that trade restrictions have so far mainly concerned agricultural goods, which are transported in containers to a lesser extent.

• The flash estimate for July is based on data from 29 ports, which account for just under 68% of the turnover represented by the index.

• The RWI/ISL Container Throughput Index for August 2019 will be published on 25. September 2019.

Regarding the development of the index, RWI Chief Economist Roland Döhrn says: "Despite the currently somewhat more favorable data on container handling, world trade faces difficult times."

About the RWI/ISL container throughput index:

The index includes the data on container transhipment in 83 international ports, which are continuously collected by the ISL as part of its market observation and account for around 60 percent of global container transhipment. Since international trade is mainly handled by sea, container transhipments allow reliable conclusions to be drawn about world trade. Because many ports already report on their activities two weeks after the end of a month, the RWI/ISL Container Handling Index is a reliable early indicator of the development of international trade in processed goods and thus also of global economic activity.

---------------------------

Contact:

Prof. Dr. Torsten Schmidt, Tel.: (0201) 8149-287, E-Mail
Sabine Weiler (Pressestelle), Tel.: (0201) 8149-213, E-Mail