2018 total
3.49 million new vehicles
First port · 2018
818,225 new vehicles
Series high, 2017–2025
3.89 million new vehicles
Passenger vehicles (the cars carried on ferries)
5.51 million vehicles
The 2018 balance
Spanish ports handled 3.49 million new vehicles in 2018, 0.3% more than in 2017 (9,444 new vehicles more). This is the year-end balance according to Puertos del Estado’s monthly statistics, with December data for the 28 port authorities.
The high point of the 2017–2025 series is 2023, with 3.89 million new vehicles: 2018 was 10.3% below it and ranks 4th of the 9 years with data.
In the 2018 ranking, the ports moving up on 2017 are Valencia (from 2nd to 1st); those moving down are Barcelona (from 1st to 2nd).
Passenger vehicles (the cars carried on ferries): 5.51 million vehicles in 2018, 8.9% more than in 2017. Santa Cruz de Tenerife ranks first on this measure, with 1.37 million vehicles.
Valencia ranks first among port authorities with 818,225 new vehicles in 2018 (3.2% more than in 2017). It is followed by Barcelona (809,354 new vehicles) and Santander (489,641 new vehicles). Together, the three account for 60.6% of the total.
The largest increases were recorded by Málaga (+17.5%), Pasaia (+8.5%) and Baleares (+6.8%); the steepest falls by Vigo (−7.1%), Barcelona (−3.2%) and Tarragona (−2.8%). The comparison is limited to port authorities that account for at least 1% of the total, so that an extreme swing at a small player does not distort the picture.
The rest of the top ten are Vigo (4th, 450,350 new vehicles, −7.1%), Pasaia (5th, 254,673 new vehicles, +8.5%), Tarragona (6th, 194,738 new vehicles, −2.8%), Baleares (7th, 184,426 new vehicles, +6.8%), Las Palmas (8th, 106,589 new vehicles, +3.2%), Santa Cruz de Tenerife (9th, 75,418 new vehicles, +1.5%) and Málaga (10th, 64,315 new vehicles, +17.5%).
At the bottom of the table are Ceuta (1,156 new vehicles), Castellón (489 new vehicles) and Almería (321 new vehicles), out of a total of 28 port authorities with data.
The distribution is highly concentrated: the top five account for 80.8% of the total and 5 port authorities are enough to reach 80%, while the other 18 port authorities further down share the remaining 1.3%. 13 of the 22 port authorities with a comparison grew compared with 2017, 7 of them by double digits, and 9 fell.
Of the 12 months of 2018 with data, 4 are above the same month of 2017 and 8 below; over the last three months (October, November, December) the figure is down 29.8% on the same months of 2017; the largest year-on-year difference was in December (down 54.7%); the highest point in the series was May, at 356,094, and the lowest August, at 169,668.
Top 10 · Ranking of port authorities · 2018
Month by month · 2018 vs 2017
Full table · 28 port authorities · 2018
| # | Port authorities | 2018 | Change on 2017 | 2017 | Share | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valencia | 818,225 | +3.2% | 793,093 | 23.4% | Port |
| 2 | Barcelona | 809,354 | −3.2% | 836,465 | 23.2% | Port |
| 3 | Santander | 489,641 | −1.5% | 497,303 | 14.0% | Port |
| 4 | Vigo | 450,350 | −7.1% | 484,961 | 12.9% | Port |
| 5 | Pasaia | 254,673 | +8.5% | 234,705 | 7.3% | Port |
| 6 | Tarragona | 194,738 | −2.8% | 200,360 | 5.6% | Port |
| 7 | Baleares | 184,426 | +6.8% | 172,695 | 5.3% | Port |
| 8 | Las Palmas | 106,589 | +3.2% | 103,245 | 3.1% | Port |
| 9 | Santa Cruz de Tenerife | 75,418 | +1.5% | 74,283 | 2.2% | Port |
| 10 | Málaga | 64,315 | +17.5% | 54,751 | 1.8% | Port |
| 11 | Bahía de Cádiz | 16,599 | +3.7% | 16,002 | 0.5% | Port |
| 12 | Bilbao | 12,472 | +75.5% | 7,107 | 0.4% | Port |
| 13 | Bahía de Algeciras | 4,077 | +88.3% | 2,165 | 0.1% | Port |
| 14 | Alicante | 3,115 | +2,093.7% | 142 | 0.1% | Port |
| 15 | Huelva | 2,282 | +15,113.3% | 15 | 0.1% | Port |
| 16 | Motril | 2,220 | +390.1% | 453 | 0.1% | Port |
| 17 | Melilla | 1,610 | −1.8% | 1,639 | 0.0% | Port |
| 18 | Sevilla | 1,586 | −58.9% | 3,860 | 0.0% | Port |
| 19 | Ceuta | 1,156 | +2,588.4% | 43 | 0.0% | Port |
| 20 | Castellón | 489 | −13.1% | 563 | 0.0% | Port |
| 21 | Almería | 321 | −10.8% | 360 | 0.0% | Port |
| 22 | A Coruña | 0 | — | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 23 | Avilés | 0 | — | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 24 | Cartagena | 0 | — | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 25 | Ferrol-San Cibrao | 0 | — | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 26 | Gijón | 0 | −100.0% | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 27 | Marín y Ría de Pontevedra | 0 | — | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 28 | Vilagarcía | 0 | — | — | 0.0% | Port |
What this indicator measures
Puertos del Estado separates vehicles shipped as cargo (new vehicles exported or imported on car carriers or ro-ro ships) from vehicles travelling with passengers (the cars of ferry travellers). The first measures automotive industry logistics; the second follows passenger traffic to the Balearic and Canary Islands and across the Strait.
Frequently asked questions
Which was Spain’s first port by vehicles shipped as cargo in 2018?
Valencia, with 818,225 new vehicles in 2018, 23.4% of the total.
What was the vehicles shipped as cargo figure for Spanish ports in 2018?
3.49 million new vehicles in 2018, 0.3% more than in 2017.
Was 2018 a record year?
No: the high point of the 2017–2025 series is 2023, with 3.89 million new vehicles; 2018 was 10.3% below it.
Source
Puertos del Estado. To explore the data in detail, use PortStats · vehicles as cargo, annual series or see the original source.