[ Port of Le Havre Authority ]

The First Traffic Results for 1997: Record Figures for General Cargo a
nd Container

The total cargo trade of the Port of Le Havre for the year 1997 amount
ed to 60.2 million metric tonnes(Mt), ship supplies included, with a m
ore than 6 % increase compared to the year 1996, that is a trade rise
by 3.5 million tonnes. This is an excellent result for two different
reasons. The port of Le Havre reported the highest growth rate this y
ear compared to the previous 15 years or more, since it is necessary t
o look back to the year 1981 to find a higher total tonnage. But ther
e is just no comparison between the two situations, finally, as fuel t
rades at that time were carrying more weight in the total trade than t
hey do today. With 45.1 Mt in 1997, dry and liquid bulks rose 2.1 Mt(
+ 4.8%) compared to 1996.
But the highest satisfaction lies in the total trade of the year 1997
which exceeded the 57.9 Mt handled in 1991... the year preceding the v
ote of the stevedoring reform, as the difference is made by general ca
rgo which increased by 3Mt compared to 1991. Reaching the top level of
15 Mt, this general cargo recorded a 10% rise over 1996 and thus made
another record, with the impulse in containers, which rose 17.6%. Th
e latter exceeded the 10 million tonne-mark and recorded around 11.2 M
t. This is of course another record figure.