Ports
In 2009 on average, container ships made more than 7,000 port calls, and vehicle vessels just over 1,000 port calls per week. This means workers at ports worldwide loaded and unloaded more than 10,000 liner ship stops per week. The average ship made 2.1 port calls per week.
In 2010 and 2011 on average, the number of weekly port calls made by vehicle vessels remained the same - 1,000 port calls. However, the number of weekly port calls made by container ships increased significantly to approximately 9,000 port calls in 2010, and almost 10,000 port calls in 2011.
Average Weekly Port Calls Made by Container and Vehicle Vessels, 2009, 2010, and
First 23 Weeks of 2011
Source: Lloyd's Register - Fairplay Research, AISLive
As the largest exporter of goods moving on container services, China ranks as number one in the top fifty global container ports. Furthermore, Singapore ranks as number two mainly because it is an important hub where containers from one-liner service are transferred to another liner service for on-carriage to their final destination. The top 50 containers ports represent 30 countries demonstrating the truly global nature of the liner shipping business and the importance of the network of ports that facilitate timely and efficient ship and cargo movement.