India's major ports experience 5% increase in traffic as iron ore shipments expand

Total volume of shipments handled reached 605.15 million tons, up from 576.70 million tons in the same period last year, according to provisional data from the Indian Ports Association.

Iron ore shipments rose 45% on-year to 43.14 million tons, mainly on account of significant exports from east coast ports such as Paradip and Vizag.

Coking coal imports surged nearly 13 percent to 49 million tons from 43 million tons in the same period last fiscal year.

Conversely, thermal or steam coal shipments in the April-December 2023 period fell slightly from 97.5 million tons to 95 million tons, down slightly from a year earlier, according to data from major ports across the country.