In the third quarter of this year, freight traffic in the port of Palermo recorded a decrease of -10.2% on the same period of 2022 having handled 1.90 million tonnes, which was caused by the strong -16.9% contraction in unloading cargo volumes to 1.27 million tonnes, partially offset by growth in +7.2% of cargo at embarkation rose to 628 thousand tons.

The total traffic of miscellaneous goods alone remained stable as 1.73 million tons were handled (+0.4%), of which 1.69 million tons of rolling stock (0%) and 40 thousand tonnes of container cargo (+18.1%). Virtually zero Dry bulk traffic, which in the third quarter of 2019 last year it was 296 thousand tons, while bulk liquid assets marked an increase of +77.3% having been 164 thousand Tons.

Passenger traffic was 1.08 million people (+14.7%), including 304 thousand cruise passengers (+43.0%), of which 61,000 as home ports (+51.6%) and 243,000 in transit (+40.9%), 700,000 ferry passengers (+6.5%) and 74,000 ferry passengers (+6.5%) maritime services of less than 50 miles (+5.6%).

In the first nine months of 2023, the port of Palermo handled a total of 6.10 million tonnes of goods, with a increase of +3.5% over the same period last year, of which 3.79 million tonnes at landing (-3.5%) and 2.31 million tonnes tonnes at loading (+17.5%). The total miscellaneous goods are 5.65 million tonnes (+7.0%), with a rolling stock equal to 5.53 million tons (+6.9%) and 117 thousand tonnes of containerised cargo (+13.8%). In the 368 thousand tons were handled (+33.5%) and in dry bulk 82 thousand tons (-75.9%). The cruise passengers were 670,000 (+70.1%) and those of ferries 1.23 million (+14.7%).

In the first nine months of this year, the ports of Termini Imerese, Trapani and Porto Empedocle, also managed by the Port System of the Western Sicilian Sea, have handled respectively 1.11 million tons (+4.8%), 447 thousand tons (+1.6%) and 347 thousand tons (-26.5%).