Cargo throughput via seaports across the country hit 62.9 million tonnes in July this year, up 2 per cent year-on-year, according to the Vietnam Maritime Administration.

Container throughput increased by 1 per cent to 2.2 million TEUs during the period.

Notably, the volume of imports and exports tends to increase, but domestic container goods has decreased slightly.

Economists said that the growth of goods throughput at seaports was still low and had not regained the recovery momentum to the level before the COVID-19 pandemic.

They attributed the situation to the lingering consequences of the pandemic, and the Russia – Ukraine conflict, which put pressure on the global economy.

Rising inflation amid the bleak growth prospect could have a significant impact on the global consumer demand, and goods transport, they said, noting that Vietnam, with an open economy, could hardly avoid these effects.

Trinh The Cuong, director of the Da Nang Port Authority, said the over-20 per cent-decrease in the volume throughput of domestic goods in the past three months showed that the goods circulation in the region had not shown signs of recovery after the pandemic.

The port and shipping industry is forecast to have a long-term rebound outlook thanks to export growth in the second half of 2022 and the whole 2023, according to the Retail Research and Investment Advisory Division at Saigon Securities Incorporation (SSI). — VNS