ATI sees signs of trade recovery

MANILA, Philippines — Port operator Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI) is seeing signs of trade recovery this month following a slowdown in February brought about by a regional holiday and the coronavirus 2019 disease or COVID-19 outbreak.

ATI said Manila South Harbor has experienced signs of trade improvement compared to the latter part of February with vessel calls, especially those from Chinese ports, starting to pick up.

The company said inbound and outbound container flows have likewise seen development, with more container inventories recorded at the terminal.

ATI said an improving trend has likewise been observed in its Batangas port.

In China, ATI said ports have also resumed operations after coming off a sluggish start after the Chinese New Year, which is traditionally a lean season for global trade.

“ATI hopes that the cargo uptrend continues,” the company said.

At present, ATI said both its international gateway terminals in Manila and Batangas are business as usual, with contingency measures in place to ensure unimpeded cargo flow and the safety of its stakeholders.

ATI finished 2019 with a record high cargo volume of 1.61 million twenty-foot equivalent units handled in both Manila South Harbor and Batangas Container Terminal.

Its net income soared by 28.9 percent to P3.7 billion in 2019 from P2.9 billion recorded the previous year, while revenues last year grew by 8.6 percent to P13.3 billion behind higher international containerized cargoes handled by its gateway ports in Manila and Batangas.