Container traffic points to busy port activity in 9 months of 2026

During the first nine months of 2026, Qatar's ports handled a significant volume of container traffic, underscoring the country's busy maritime activities. According to Mwani Qatar, the nation's three main ports collectively processed over 648,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of container traffic. This figure represents an average of about 142 calls per month, or nearly five a day.

Container traffic dominated the activity, with 648,164 TEUs handled, equating to roughly 72,000 TEUs per month or around 2,400 TEUs a day. Beyond containers, bulk and general cargo also saw high activity. Bulk cargo totaled 506,321 tonnes, while general cargo amounted to 442,103 tonnes. Together, they surpassed 948,000 tonnes, with bulk cargo accounting for about 53% of the combined volume and general cargo making up the remaining 47%.

Vehicle and equipment shipments remained consistent, with roll-on/roll-off (RORO) operations handling 24,726 units, or around 2,750 units a month and about 90 a day. Livestock handling reached 128,775 heads, averaging about 14,300 a month, ensuring a steady supply of fresh meat products to meet local demand. Over the 273-day reporting period, the ports processed an average of 2,374 TEUs daily, roughly 3,474 tonnes of bulk and general cargo, 91 RORO units, and about 472 head of livestock.

Bulk cargo outpaced general cargo by approximately 64,218 tonnes, or about 14.5%. When considering the 1,277 vessel calls, the container volumes equate to roughly 508 TEUs per call, although this is a general indicator as the vessel total includes various types of vessels.