Malaysia’s Northport sees volume recovery in Q4

Northport expects to recover from weak volumes in the first half and sees traffic picking up again in the fourth quarter, local reports quoted ceo Azman Shah Mohd Yusof as saying.

He said Northport is confident that fourth quarter volume will be driven by domestic volume and the effects of its sister port agreement Weifang in May.

He alluded to the usual cycles and rival Westports' announcement that it also expects to see better flows in the fourth quarter as activity peaks.

"There is always a cycle and we have to weather the storm and see how it goes for the rest of the year, but we are hopeful," Azman Shah said.

“We expect the slowdown to continue in September and October as there are many holidays and we are currently now in the middle of the golden week in China. But overall, we expect organic growth to remain sustainable and going to reflect to better volume in Q4,” he said.

Data from Northport and Westports, the two terminal operators that make up container handling operations in Port Klang, showed volume plunging 8% to 3m teu in the second quarter.

The falls have been blamed on the realignment of shipping lines after a wave of consolidations and alliance movements earlier this year.