Manufacturing, autos and logistics
Transshipment hub
A port where containers are moved between ships on their way to other destinations.
Last reviewedWhat does Transshipment hub mean?
A transshipment hub is a port where large ships drop containers that are then loaded onto other ships, often smaller feeder vessels, to reach their final port. Much of the cargo never enters the local economy. Singapore, Colombo, Tanger Med and Salalah are major examples, and Jebel Ali in Dubai combines hub traffic with local cargo. India has built Vizhinjam port in Kerala partly to capture Indian cargo that is now transshipped through Colombo. Example: one container moved through a hub is counted twice in port traffic, once unloaded and once loaded, so a pure hub handling 10 million TEU a year moves only about 5 million TEU of actual boxes. Hubs compete fiercely on price, speed and location, because shipping lines can switch.
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Related terms
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