Beirut Port freight activity accelerated to around 516 thousand tons during the month of July 2024, up from 481 thousand tons in the previous month. On a cumulative basis, freight activity rose by 6.54% y-o-y during the first seven months of 2024 to 3,200 thousand tons up from 3,004 thousand tons a year earlier. The number of vessels increased by 18.42% year-on-year to 900 in comparison with 760 a year earlier, while the number of imported cars contracted by 34.25% to 23,107 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 444,257 thousand TEUs (including transshipments) up to July 2024 in comparison with a higher cargo capacity of some 473.328 thousand TEUs in the same period last year.