The Port Development Council announced this week that Hong Kong's container ports handled 1.87 million TEU in March and that its first quarter 2006 throughput hit 5.5 million TEU, an increase of 2.3 per cent year on year.

Kwai Tsing Container Terminals, which handles the bulk of Hong Kong throughput, lifted 3.89 million TEU, up 12.4 per cent in the first quarter. Hong Kong's total throughput in March for all terminals stood at 1.87 million TEU, down 8.8 per cent year on year, with 1.31 million TEU of that passing through Kwai Tsing terminals, a rise of 4.2 per cent.

Throughput at non-Kwai Tsing terminals fell 29.4 per cent to 560,000 TEU in March, bringing the first quarter's total to 1.61 million, down 15.9 per cent over a year earlier.