Container port traffic in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Container port traffic was 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units in 2024. ▲ Rising
Container port traffic in Saudi Arabia, 2010–2024
Source: UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Measured in TEU: 20 foot equivalent units.
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units for container port traffic in 2024.
The figure is down 29.4% on the previous year and up 17.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, container port traffic in Saudi Arabia peaked at 11.38 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units in 2023 and was at its lowest, 5.31 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units, in 2010.
That places Saudi Arabia 27th out of 167 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Container port traffic in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 5.31 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | — |
| 2011 | 5.69 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +7.2% |
| 2012 | 6.62 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +16.3% |
| 2013 | 6.76 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 6.86 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 7.79 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +13.6% |
| 2016 | 7.68 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 8.08 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +5.2% |
| 2018 | 8.68 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +7.4% |
| 2019 | 8.91 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +2.6% |
| 2020 | 9.33 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +4.8% |
| 2021 | 9.88 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +5.8% |
| 2022 | 10.47 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +6.0% |
| 2023 | 11.38 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | +8.7% |
| 2024 | 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | -29.4% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units, 7.8× the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 1.42 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units, 5.7× the median. (21 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Container port traffic in Saudi Arabia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | -29.4% | 11.38 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 7.24 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | 5.31 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | 8.91 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.82 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | 11.38 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units | 5 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
- 24 Mexico 9.28 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units compare
- 25 Philippines 9.22 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units compare
- 26 Egypt 8.58 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units compare
- 28 Sri Lanka 7.78 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units compare
- 29 Canada 6.39 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units compare
- 30 Greece 5.69 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units compare
More infrastructure data for Saudi Arabia
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 54.18 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 159.54 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 6.71 million (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 19.75 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per capita 0.19 units per person (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, annual growth rate -1.19 % change on previous year (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, gaps filled 6.71 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per capita 1.53 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is container port traffic in Saudi Arabia?
- Container port traffic in Saudi Arabia was 8.03 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units in 2024, according to UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
- What is the highest container port traffic recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 11.38 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units in 2023.
- What is the lowest container port traffic recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.31 million TEU: 20 foot equivalent units in 2010.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for container port traffic?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 27th out of 167 countries with data for 2024.
- Is container port traffic rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 17.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), published as part of Container port traffic (TEU: 20 foot equivalent units). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Port container traffic measures the flow of containers from land to sea transport modes, and vice versa, in twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), a standard-size container. Data refer to coastal shipping as well as international journeys. Transshipment traffic is counted as two lifts at the intermediate port (once to off-load and again as an outbound lift) and includes empty units.