Beirut Port freight activity contracted to around 359 thousand tons during the month of January 2023, down from 402 thousand tons in the previous month. Moreover, and on an annual basis, freight activity dropped by 4.14% from 374 thousand tons in January 2022. The number of vessels remained flat at 89 year-on-year while the number of imported cars more than tripled to 7,641 as people flocked to buying cars in anticipation of a potential adjustment in custom fees and in the official exchange rate. In a related context, the Beirut port handled containers with a total cargo capacity of around 54.87 thousand TEUs (including transshipments) in January 2023 in comparison with a cargo capacity of some 49.98 thousand TEUs in January 2022.