The Port of Barcelona handled 2.82m TEU in the first nine months of 2026, broadly in line with the same period last year, with a minor year-on-year decline of 0.4%. The port said that growth in full import containers and transhipment traffic offset a decline in exports. Overall cargo throughput rose 1% year-on-year to 52.8m tonnes.

Full import containers increased 7.1%, with volumes from China rising 15.1% and Vietnam up 12.6%. Container exports fell 7.2%, reflecting weaker performance in China and the United States.

Vehicle traffic rose 2.7% to 541,565 units, driven by an 18.6% increase in imports to 163,289 vehicles. Electric and hybrid models accounted for 60% of imported vehicles.

Liquid bulk throughput increased 2.2% to 12.5m tonnes, led by a 51.1% rise in chemical products and a 39.9% increase in biofuels. Dry bulk volumes fell 2.9% to 2.9m tonnes, as a 18.9% increase in potash was outweighed by declines in grain and salt traffic, down 35% and 15.2%, respectively.

Ro-Ro traffic grew 2.9% to 339,402 intermodal transport units, supported by an 8.5% increase in traffic with Italy. Passenger traffic rose 4.5% to 4.8m movements, including 1.52m ferry passengers and 1.89m cruise passengers.