The driving force for the fourth quarter surge was high demand in India, Europe, and the Middle East, which saw a rise of 7.6 percent year on year on a recorded basis for gross container volumes and 6.5 percent on a like-for-like basis.

This rise means that in the 2020 financial year, DP World managed 71.2 million TEUs, flat year-on-year growth and up 0.2 percent on a like-for-like basis.

Despite the strong end of the year resulting in flat growth for 2020, Group Chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, said that DP World's productivity "compares favorably" to an industry that is expected to be down 2.1 percent.

Elsewhere, DP World's London Gateway, DP World Santos, and Vancouver Canada had good results.

“Overall, the full year solid volume performance leaves us well placed to deliver a relatively stable financial performance in 2020. We remain focused on containing costs to protect profitability, managing growth capex to preserve cashflow and are confident of meeting our 2022 targets,” said Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO.

Expenditure in foreign projects such as the Port of Luanda has been continued by DP World. The CEO of the group added that factors surrounding the pandemic, geopolitical instability, and the current trade war suggest that the outlook remains uncertain while 2021 has begun encouragingly.

Maritime Business World