Beirut Port freight activity slowed to around 481 thousand tons during the month of June 2024, down from 541 thousand tons in the previous month. On a cumulative basis, freight activity rose by 5.22% y-o-y during the first half of 2024 to 2,684 thousand tons up from 2,551 thousand tons a year earlier. The number of vessels increased by 22.42% year-on-year to 770 in comparison with 629 a year earlier, while the number of imported cars contracted by 35.82% to 20,002 cars as people flocked in early 2023 to buying cars ahead of any increases in the applicable exchange rate on custom fees. In a related context, the Beirut port handled containers with a total cargo capacity of around 371.959 thousand TEUs (including transshipments) up to June 2024 in comparison with a higher cargo capacity of some 391.894 thousand TEUs in the same period last year.