CAIRO, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- Egypt has pledged to advance port development after East Port Said (EPS) ranked third globally in the 2024 Container Port Performance Index (CPPI), jointly released by the World Bank and S&P Global Market Intelligence, the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) said on Tuesday.
The ranking also placed EPS first regionally, underscoring Egypt's efforts to establish itself as a key trade and logistics hub.
Waleid Gamal El-Dein, chairman of the SCZone, said the ranking "is a new global achievement added to Egypt's record of successes in container handling at EPS port" and marks "a step forward in strengthening the SCZone's role as a global gateway for trade between East and West."
He emphasized that full support from Egypt's leadership enabled the SCZone to make "unprecedented steps in developing its affiliated ports and bolstering Egypt's position as a regional trade and logistics hub."
The CPPI evaluates port efficiency based on vessel turnaround times, cargo handling operations, infrastructure quality, and digital integration. The World Bank noted EPS was among the fastest-improving ports globally from 2020 to 2024.
China dominated the top 20 CPPI rankings, claiming 12 spots, led by Yangshan and Fuzhou in first and second place, highlighting the country's continued global influence in maritime trade. Other top performers included ports in Morocco, Vietnam, Qatar, Malaysia, Oman, Japan, and Spain.
Expansion work at the Suez Canal Container Terminal is expected to increase EPS's annual handling capacity by 2.1 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) to 6.6 million TEUs, further strengthening its global standing, the SCZone said. ■