The Port of Antwerp-Bruges closed the first nine months of 2026 with total cargo throughput of 200.9 million tonnes, down 0.8% on the same period last year, despite a recovery in container traffic during the third quarter. The Belgian port facilities recorded a 1.2% increase in the number of TEUs handled, reaching 10.4 million, although the performance of the different cargo segments continues to be affected by international trade tensions, energy costs and the state of European industry.
According to data published by the Port of Antwerp-Bruges Authority, container traffic recorded its strongest performance since the fourth quarter of 2020 during the third quarter. The recovery began in August, following several months affected by adverse weather conditions, strikes among services connected to maritime activity and various operational incidents.
Among the latter, the port authority cited an oil spill at the Deurganck dock during the first half of the year and an interruption to operations in mid-July caused by a damaged container carrying hydrofluoric acid.
Container growth was concentrated mainly in empty units, which saw an 11.7% increase in throughput, while full containers declined by 1.3%. According to the port, this difference reflects the increase in imports and difficulties facing exports, a situation that is increasing the need to reposition empty equipment, particularly to Asia.
In terms of weight, containerised cargo reached 112.8 million tonnes, down 0.6% on the period from January to September 2025. During the first half of the year, Antwerp-Bruges maintained a 29% market share among ports on the Hamburg–Le Havre corridor, a decrease of 0.1 percentage points from the previous year.
Disruptions to international trade are also reflected in trade with the Middle East. The port authority says the conflict in the region has forced shipping lines to revise their schedules and establish alternative routes. As a result, container exports to the Persian Gulf fell by 70%, while shipments to other parts of the Middle East nearly quintupled.
The performance of other cargo types was mixed. Conventional general cargo fell by 16.6% to 6.2 million tonnes, mainly due to a reduction in the movement of steel products, which account for more than 70% of this segment.
Iron and steel traffic fell by 17.5% year to date, with a 30.1% decline during the third quarter. Imports of these products dropped by 43.8% between July and September, amid the European steel safeguard quotas, the carbon border adjustment mechanism and weak industrial demand. Steel shipments to the United States fell by 22.7%.
By contrast, fruit and vegetable traffic grew by 7.6%, while wood products recorded a cumulative decline of 39.8%.
The ro-ro segment continued to perform positively, with 16.5 million tonnes handled, up 5.5%. Growth was mainly linked to the movement of new vehicles, which increased by 9.3% to 2,561,000 units.
Car imports grew by 13.7%, driven particularly by shipments from China, which rose by 38.1%, and Japan, which recorded a 10% increase. By contrast, the movement of used vehicles fell by 6.9%, while truck traffic declined by 3.3%.
In unaccompanied ro-ro freight transport, volumes increased by 5.1%, although trends varied across the main markets. Trade with Ireland grew by 9.1% and with Scandinavia by 25.9%, while traffic with the Iberian Peninsula fell by 25.1% and that with the United Kingdom declined by 4%.
Dry bulk cargo increased by 13% to 11.4 million tonnes, with growth accelerating in the third quarter, when traffic rose by 35%. This performance was linked to increased inflows of iron ore from Liberia, Canada and Venezuela, as well as growth in other minerals. By contrast, fertilisers recorded a cumulative decline of 1.1%.
The picture was different for liquid bulk, with throughput down 3.4% to 54 million tonnes. Oil products fell by 2.3%, with declines of 28.8% in diesel and 39.9% in kerosene, while gasoline increased by 6%.
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) traffic fell by 12.2% during the first nine months of the year. Deliveries to the Zeebrugge facilities dropped by 52.1% in the third quarter compared with the same period in 2025. Supplies from Qatar have been interrupted since March, while arrivals from the United States fell by 79.2% during the third quarter as cargoes were diverted to Asian markets.
The CEO of the Port of Antwerp-Bruges, Rob Smeets, said the recovery in container traffic was accompanied by challenges arising from trade barriers, high energy prices and the state of European industry. In this context, he argued that investment in port capacity and facilities must be maintained.
For his part, Johan Klaps, chair of the board of directors and Antwerp's alderman for the port, identified trade diversification as one of the organisation's priorities and named India as a market with growth potential for connections between Asia and Europe.
As for maritime activity, Antwerp-Bruges received 14,879 merchant vessels between January and September, down 3.6% on a year earlier. The combined gross tonnage of these calls decreased by 1.8% to 479.6 million GT.
Cruise activity in Zeebrugge recorded 136 calls, a decrease of 2.4%, and a total of 342,441 passengers, down 13.3%. In inland waterway transport, the port authority also noted the effects of drought and low water levels on Europe's main waterways, with throughput falling by 8.3% in the third quarter compared with the second.
