Until March 2026, the dynamics of maritime trade and port services show structural transformations in the distribution of global fleets arriving at commercial terminals. The consolidated statistical balance for the month of the first quarter of 2026, compared to the same period of the previous year, reflects a monthly contraction of 2.01% in the total number of vessels, registering 780 units compared to 796 in March 2025, a drop of 16 vessels. However, the accumulated performance for the first quarter presents a solid growth outlook: between January and March 2026, 2,323 vessels passed through the port compared to 2,222 in the first quarter of 2025, a net increase of 101 units equivalent to a 4.55% expansion in commercial activity.
The evolution of the Gross Tonnage (GT) total of vessels confirms that the port operates with deeper-draft and larger-capacity ships, increasing efficiency through scale. The total GT for March 2026 reached 16,254,161, surpassing the 15,944,367 recorded in March 2025, representing an increase of 309,793 GT, or 1.94% more. In the accumulated quarterly analysis, the gain in volume is even more representative for port services: the first quarter of 2026 closed with a volume of 46,213,916 GT compared to 41,484,418 GT of the equivalent period in 2025, yielding a positive accumulated difference of 4,729,499 GT, an increase of 11.40%.
The main engine of this quarterly growth is concentrated exclusively in the merchant ship segment, whose monthly presence increased from 741 vessels in March 2025 to 762 in March 2026, a rise of 2.83% (21 additional vessels). In terms of accumulated quarterly volume, the merchant fleet totaled 2,188 vessels in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2,041 in the previous year, a 7.20% advance that contributed 147 commercial vessels to the overall count. The tonnage of these cargo and passenger vessels soared to 16,226,420 GT in March 2026 (compared to 15,864,693 GT in 2025, an increase of 2.28% more) and skyrocketed in the quarterly total to 45,984,785 GT compared to 41,259,963 GT from the previous period, yielding a positive difference of 4,724,822 GT (an increase of 11.45%).
Bulk carriers
Within the detailed merchant type, the most explosive behavior of the period is attributed to solid bulk carriers. This segment doubled its calls in March 2026, reaching 61 vessels compared to 31 in March 2025, a surge of 96.77% (30 additional ships). In the accumulated quarter, the figure jumped from 55 solid bulk carriers to 174, adding 119 units, a growth of 216.36%. This activity was reflected in the gross tonnage for the category, which rose monthly from 1,100,785 GT to 2,280,411 GT (an increase of 107.16%, equivalent to 1,179,626 GT more) and advanced in the quarter from 1,904,934 GT to 5,957,809 GT, recording a spectacular accumulated difference of 4,052,875 GT, an increase of 212.76%.
Liquid bulk carriers experienced a notable operational setback in March 2026, falling to 72 vessels compared to 86 in March 2025, a loss of 16.28% (14 units fewer). Despite this monthly downturn, the accumulated quarterly total remains in positive territory with 219 vessels versus 210 in 2025, a rise of 4.29% (9 vessels more). The monthly GT for this sector suffered a drop of 39.90%, yielding 1,062,996 GT to register 1,601,345 GT compared to 2,664,341 GT from the previous year; the quarterly balance solidified this downward trend with 5,512,494 GT in 2026 versus 5,948,779 GT in 2025, a decline of 7.33% (436,285 GT less).
Setback
The category of mixed and passenger vessels (RO-RO and fast ferries), the largest in the port, maintained stable levels with residual variations. In March 2026, 466 vessels operated compared to 468 in March 2025, a slight decline of 0.43% (2 vessels fewer), while the quarter closed with 1,337 calls against 1,354 from the previous year, yielding a decrease of 1.26% (17 units fewer). Their monthly tonnage dropped by 5.79%, registering 5,444,664 GT compared to 5,779,133 GT in 2025, a loss of 334,469 GT; the accumulated quarterly total recorded a decline of 6.01%, falling from 16,497,980 GT to 15,505,872 GT, losing 992,108 GT.
Containerships showed a flat and defensive performance, registering 80 vessels in March 2026 compared to 77 in March 2025, a rise of 3.90% (3 vessels more), and consolidating 222 units in the first quarter of the year compared to 218 from the previous cycle, an advance of 1.83% (4 vessels more). Nevertheless, the average size of the ships on monthly routes was smaller, causing a decline of 16.14% in the GT for March, which fell from 917,386 to 769,356 GT (148,030 GT less). The accumulated total for the quarter managed to maintain positive ground with a 1.04% increase, reaching 2,605,337 GT compared to 2,578,499 GT in 2025, providing 26,838 GT additional.
The last commercial category, encompassed under the generic term of other merchant vessels, contributed dynamism to the monthly balance by recording 23 ships in March 2026 versus 15 in March 2025, a rise of 53.33% (8 vessels more). The quarter ended with 64 calls compared to 43 from the previous year, an increase of 48.84% (21 units more). The monthly tonnage for this segment rose by 29.81%, increasing from 171,025 to 222,007 GT (50,982 GT additional), while the accumulated quarterly total nearly doubled, climbing from 323,266 GT to 637,891 GT, an advance of 97.33% that injected 314,625 GT into the port system.
The behavior of non-merchant vessels breaks the growth inertia of the facility, reflecting a severe contraction of fishing and official fleet activity. The monthly volume of these vessels fell from 55 units in March 2025 to just 18 in March 2026, a drop of 67.27% (37 vessels fewer). The accumulated data for the first quarter confirms this decline with a fall of 25.41%, recording 135 vessels in 2026 compared to 181 in the first quarter of last year, which represents a net loss of 46 units.
Tonnage
The tonnage of the non-merchant fleet accompanied this monthly decline with a fall of 65.18% in March 2026, recording 27,741 GT compared to 79,674 GT in March 2025, a net loss of 51,934 GT. The accumulated balance for the first three months of the year managed to retain a positive variation of 2.08% due to the large tonnage operations in the preceding months, closing with 229,131 GT compared to 224,455 GT in 2025, a marginal gain of 4,677 GT.
Traditional fishing vessels recorded one of the most significant declines in the statistical report, recording only 9 vessels in March 2026 compared to 39 in March 2025, a monthly drop of 76.92% that removed 30 units from dock activity. In the accumulated quarter, the fishing fleet decreased to 60 vessels compared to 101 from the previous year, a drop of 40.59% (41 fishing vessels fewer). The monthly tonnage for this fleet fell by 42.34% in March 2026, registering 426 GT compared to 739 GT in 2025 (313 GT less); the accumulated quarterly total fell by 4.06%, dropping from 2,870 GT to 2,753 GT, a loss of 117 GT.
The section reserved for other non-merchant vessels closed March 2026 with 9 units compared to 13 the previous year, a decrease of 30.77% (4 vessels fewer), and totaled 66 vessels in the first quarter of the year compared to 69 in 2025, a smaller decline of 4.35% (3 units fewer). Their monthly GT fell by 52.13%, recording 27,315 GT compared to 57,065 GT in March 2025 (a loss of 29,750 GT); however, the accumulated quarterly volume rose by 12.85%, climbing from 190,718 GT to 215,231 GT, gaining 24,512 GT.
