RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s ports witnessed an annual growth of 18.8 percent growth in cargo operations in July 2023 as they registered 753,469 containers, the body responsible for the facilities has revealed. According to the Saudi Ports Authority, also known as Mawani, transshipment containers increased 0.41 percent yearly to 268,901 standard containers in July 2023, up from 267,802 in the same month of 2022. Exported containers in also surged 34.56 percent to 250,004 containers compared with 185,791 in the year-ago period, while imported containers rose 30.09 percent to 234,592. However, food cargo in July 2023 decreased 16.93 percent to 1.5 million tons compared with 1.9 million tons in the same period last year. “The continuous growth in Saudi Arabia’s ports reflects Mawani’s efforts to boost maritime operations in the Kingdom to position itself as a global logistics hub that connects the three continents,” said the port authority in the press release. The statement added that Mawani continues to grow the Kingdom’s logistics sector by raising its rank in global performance indexes. Total tonnage handling declined 9.84 percent to 25 million tons compared with 27.8 million in the corresponding period of 2022. The ports also recorded a decline of 63.84 percent in livestock to 222,327 cattle heads in July 2023, compared with 614,823 in the same period last year. Additionally, general cargo volumes during the month were 472,657 tons, with solid bulk cargo constituting 4 million tons and liquid bulk freight 12.6 million tons. The ports also saw a 2.94 percent growth in maritime traffic to about 1,017 ships in July compared to 988 in the same month last year. They also received 76,532 passengers in July, an increase of 32.57 percent from last year’s 57,730. Saudi ports took delivery of 91,137 cars; an increase of 14.34 percent compared to 79,708 in the same period of the previous year. Last month, Mawani reported adding 20 new shipping services in the first half of this year to boost its supply chain infrastructure. These new shipping services were introduced in Jeddah Islamic Port, King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam and Jubail Commercial Port, linking the Kingdom with other global ports while facilitating trade and export.