RWI/ISL Container Throughput Index: Sharp decline in container throughput indicates a weak phase in the global economy
The essence in a nutshell:
- The Container Throughput Index of RWI – Leibniz Institute for Economic Research and the Institute for Shipping Economics and Logistics (ISL) recorded a seasonally adjusted significant decrease in October from 124.2 (revised) to 120.8 points.
- The decrease of container throughput in Chinese ports was less severe than in other parts of the world. The index for Chinese ports decreased from 130.8 to 129.3 points.
- The North Range Index, an indicator for economic development in northern Europe and Germany, recorded a much more significant decrease in October from 115.0 to 108.4 points.
- The RWI/ISL Container Throughput Index for the month of November 2022 will be published on December 22nd, 2022.
Commenting on the development of the Container Throughput Index, RWI’s head of economic research Torsten Schmidt says: “The rather distinct decrease in container throughput during the month of October could indicate the beginning of a globally weak economic phase in the winter semester. The increased energy costs are having their toll on worldwide production and also begin to impact global trade.”
About the RWI/ISL- Container Throughput Index:
The RWI/ISL Container Throughput Index consists of container throughput data from 94 international ports gathered continuously by the ISL Monthly Container Port Monitor as part of its market observation. These ports account for approximately 64 percent of global container traffic. The current flash estimate for the Container Throughput Index is based on data from about 88 percent of the total index displayed here. As international trade is handled primarily by sea, reliable conclusions can be drawn here from container port throughput data. Furthermore, the index is a reliable early indicator of international trade of manufactured goods as well as global economic activity as most ports already report their activities within two weeks after the end of each month. The container throughput index is part of the statistics on foreign trade in the „Dashboard Deutschland“ of the Federal Statistical Office.
Data series for individual ports are available in the ISL Monthly Container Port Monitor.
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Torsten Schmidt, Tel.: +49 (0) 201 8149-287, torsten.schmidt@rwi-essen.de
Sabine Weiler (Communications), Tel.: +49 (0) 201 8149-213, sabine.weiler@rwi-essen.de
Data Container Throughput Index and North Range Index
Graphic Container Throughput Index in printable resolution
RWI/ISL-Containerumschlag-Index: Nordrange
