Cargo throughput at China's ports was almost unchanged last year compared to the level seen the year prior, Chinese state media reported.

This could be attributed to the weak global demand due to high inflation costs and the Covid-19 restrictions that were only lifted in the mainland towards the end of 2022.

Xinhua said for 2022, Chinese ports handled about 15.69 billion tonnes in cargo throughput during the period, only up 0.9% from the previous year, citing data from the China Ministry of Transport.

It said that specifically, cargo throughput at the country's coastal ports went up 1.6% year on year to 10.13 billion tonnes, while goods handled at those inland ports edged down 0.3% to 5.55 billion tonnes. 

Meanwhile, the container throughput at Chinese ports rose 4.7% year on year in 2022.

The report said a total of 296 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers were handled at the country's ports last year, according to an annual report on the development of the transport industry released by the ministry.