RIYADH: Ports in Saudi Arabia recorded a 12.48 percent increase in the number of received containers in March compared to the same period last year, official data showed. The Saudi Ports Authority, also known as Mawani, disclosed that terminals in the Kingdom received 265,148 standard containers in the third month of 2024, marking an annual increase from 235,738. Furthermore, the maritime facilities experienced a 3.77 percent uptick in the volume of handled tonnage, reaching 19.64 million tonnes, in contrast to 18.93 million tonnes recorded in March 2023. “This reflects the scale of efforts made to develop port infrastructure and provide the highest levels of logistics services,” Mawani stated in a statement. The Kingdom’s general shipment volumes reached 804,837 tonnes, solid bulk cargo reached 3.94 million tonnes, and liquid bulk freight reached 14.74 million tonnes. The container handling operations saw a decrease of 9.85 percent, totaling 561,484 containers compared to 622,856 containers in the previous year. Furthermore, the harbors recorded a discharge rate of 961,131 of livestock, indicating a 54.12 percent increase compared to the 623,644 recorded during the corresponding period in 2023. However, maritime traffic witnessed a 3.01 percent decrease, totaling 968 ships compared to 998 in 2023. Similarly, the number of passengers decreased by 51.01 percent to 62,507, compared to the 127,599 recorded last year. Vehicles also decreased by 17.34 percent to 67,638 compared to 81,826 in 2023. Additionally, outgoing containers increased 8.56 percent to 212,672 compared to 195,895 last year. According to a report from the UN Conference on Trade and Development, Mawani climbed from 76.16 points in the second quarter of 2023 to 77.66 points in the third quarter of last year, affirming the Kingdom’s progress in the maritime sector. In 2023, Saudi Arabia climbed 17 global ranks in the Logistics Performance Index issued by the World Bank to reach the 38th spot globally.