Shipping Register crosses major milestone
The Hong Kong Shipping Register (HKSR) recently crossed the 40 million gross tonnage (GT) mark, a milestone marked with a March 12 luncheon and awards ceremony.
During the festivities, Hong Kong Chief Secretary for Administration Henry Tang unveiled a Han Dynasty compass as a memento of the occasion. He also presented an award to New Ansteel, the ship that crossed the 40 million GT mark.
Hong Kong Secretary for Transport and Housing Eva Cheng presented additional awards to the ships that crossed the 37 million, 38 million and 39 million GT marks.
Noting that the gathering not only celebrated a milestone in the size of the HKSR but also the quality of Hong Kong-registered ships, Marine Department Director Roger Tupper said, “Our fleet of more than 1,300 vessels and 40 million tonnes is the largest of the nine flags worldwide, whose high standard is recognized by being on the White Lists of the Paris MOU and the Tokyo MOU and also Qualship 21 in the USA.
“We intend to continue our growth, maintaining our focus on quality,” he said.
The HKSR crossed the 40 million GT mark on January 15 with the registration of the 150,971 GT ore carrier New Ansteel, owned by On Hing Shipping.
The respective ships that crossed 37 million, 38 million and 39 million GT marks were 97,871 GT LG carrier Dapeng Sun, owned by Yue Peng LNG Shipping; 115,776 GT container ship COSCO Pacific, owned by COSCO Pacific Shipping; and 29,266 GT oil/chemical carrier Gran Couva, owned by Heroic Grus.
The HKSR is among the top five shipping registries in the world. The March 12 event was jointly hosted by Hong Kong’s Marine Department and the Hong Kong Shipowners Association.
2008 port cargo throughput up 6%
Hong Kong’s total port cargo throughput for 2008 grew 6% year-on-year to 259.4 million metric tons, according to data on vessels, port cargo and containers released by the Census and Statistics Department.
Within this total, inward and outward port cargo rose 3% and 9% to 146 million metric tons and 113.4 million metric tons, respectively.
In 2008, the port of Hong Kong handled 24.5 million TEUs of containers, a 2% increase from 2007.
In the fourth quarter of 2008, Hong Kong’s total port cargo throughput fell 6% compared to a year earlier, to 61.3 million metric tons. Within this total, inward and outward port cargo decreased 6% and 5% compared to a year earlier, to 34.4 million metric and 26.9 million metric tons, respectively.
On a seasonally adjusted quarter-to-quarter comparison, total port cargo throughput decreased 10% in the fourth quarter. Within this total, inward and outward port cargo decreased 8% and 12%, respectively. The seasonally adjusted series enables more meaningful shorter-term comparisons to be made for discerning possible variations in trends.
In the fourth quarter of 2008, the port of Hong Kong handled 5.8 million TEUs of containers, an 8% decrease from the year before.
Details can be found in the quarterly report, Hong Kong Shipping Statistics, available on the Web site [www.censtatd.gov.hk/products_and_services/products/publications/index.jsp].
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