advertisement

---

In December, the Port of Montreal handled about 1.26 million 20-foot equivalent units and total volume of 23.8 million tons, according to preliminary data. The volume would represent an 11.9 percent decline compared with December 2008’s total, “demonstrating the port’s competitive strength in relation to its main East Coast competitors,” Montreal Port Authority (MPA) officials said in a prepared statement.

“Preliminary data indicates that the decrease in traffic has stabilized,” said MPA President and Chief Executive Officer Sylvie Vachon. “This points to a gradual but slow recovery that calls for us to remain cautious.”

The inland port — which is served by CN and Canadian Pacific — also handled less dry bulk cargo, such as iron, zinc and copper. However, through 2009’s first 11 months, the port handled 220,000 tons of export grain, up 16.9 percent compared with the same 2008 period.