According to preliminary data from CTS, the volume of the global container market amounted to 173.8 million TEU in 2023. Demand for shipping container shipping last year was 0.3% higher than a year earlier, after falling more than 4% in 2022.

After growth in the first half of 2023, demand for container shipping began to decline again from mid-summer, but in December there was a noticeable jump in volumes in all geographical segments, except for Asian imports.

Shanghai Port's January turnover suggests that the boom that began in December has continued into early 2024. In the first month of the year, the world's largest container port handled over 4.5 million TEU, which is 18% more than in January last year and 15% higher than the average of the previous 5 years.