businessnews24bd.com

Chittagong Port has held its position at 68th on the list of the world's top 100 ports for the second consecutive year.

London-based shipping publication Lloyd's List released the "One Hundred Ports 2026" list on Saturday, based on 2025 container handling data.

Shanghai Port in China topped the list of the world's busiest container ports, followed by Singapore Port in second place and Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, also in China, in third.

Shanghai handled 55.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2025, up nearly 7 percent from its 2024 volume.

Singapore handled 44.6 million TEUs, growing 8.60 percent year-on-year, while Ningbo-Zhoushan handled 43.8 million TEUs, posting 11.60 percent growth.

Chittagong Port handled 3.41 million TEUs in 2025, up from 3.27 million TEUs in 2024, according to port figures, marking a 4.1 percent rise in container traffic.

The growth, however, was not enough to shift its position on the global list.

The world's top 100 ports saw combined container traffic grow 6.3 percent in 2025, meaning Chittagong Port's growth rate lagged behind the average for the world's leading container ports.

Lloyd's List noted in its report that despite limited growth, major investments by APM Terminals, MSC, and Red Sea Gateway were reshaping the future of Bangladesh's principal container port.

Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Mohammed Amirul Haque said container handling at the port had grown each year despite various constraints, with local and foreign investment now flowing back into the port.

"Once the new terminals become operational, the port's container handling capacity will increase further. Beyond container traffic alone, boosting the port's overall capacity is more urgent," he said.

Lloyd's List compiles the annual ranking by comparing container handling volumes across ports worldwide.

Among South Asian countries, two Indian ports, one Pakistani port and one Sri Lankan port made this year's list.

India's Mundra Port ranked 25th and Jawaharlal Nehru Port 30th, while Sri Lanka's Colombo Port ranked 29th and Pakistan's Karachi Port ranked 84th.

Chittagong Port's best-ever ranking on the Lloyd's List index came in 2020, when it placed 58th.