KPT handles 55.44mt of cargo in FY26

KARACHI: Karachi Port Trust (KPT) handled 55. 44 million tons of cargo in the financial year ended June 30, 2026, up 2. 76 percent from 53. 95 million tons a year. According to the port authority’s annual performance review comparing FY 2025-26 with FY 2024-25, released by KPT, the throughput gain was driven almost entirely by imports, which climbed 5. 82 percent to 35. 91 million tons. Exports moved the other way, falling 2. 44 percent to 19. 53 million tons. A breakdown of cargo by type shows dry bulk cargo as the standout category, rising 12. 41 percent to 9. 06 million tons. Liquid bulk cargo also expanded, up 7. 93 percent to 13. 35 million tons, with the report noting the gain was consistent on both the import and export sides. Dry general cargo was the one category to contract, declining 1. 45 percent to 33. 13 million tons. Container handling reached 2. 75 million TEUs, up 3. 67 percent year-on-year. South Asia Pakistan Terminals Limited (SAPTL) retained the largest share of terminal traffic at 59. 6 percent, ahead of Karachi International Container Terminal (24. 7 percent) and Karachi Gateway Terminal Limited, or KGTL, (15. 5 percent). KGTL posted the fastest terminal-level growth at 7. 09 percent. Ship traffic also rose. KPT recorded 2, 115 vessel calls, up 7. 36 percent from 1, 970 the previous year, a faster pace of growth than the increase in tonnage, meaning the average cargo parcel per ship call shrank, from roughly 27. 4 kilotons to about 26. 2 kilotons. Oil tanker calls rose 12. 83 percent and bulk carrier calls rose 12. 96 percent. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

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