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Ports in Cebu recorded higher cargo and container traffic for the first half of 2026, according to preliminary figures from the Cebu Port Authority
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Cargo throughput for the first half of the year increased 2.4% to 38.625 million metric tons while container traffic rose 7.7% to 515,159 TEUs
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The subport of Argao recorded the highest cargo throughput for the period at 8.384 million mt while Pier 1 posted the biggest container traffic with 190,583 TEUs
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Ship calls, ro-ro, and passenger traffic dropped during the period
Ports in Cebu recorded higher cargo and container traffic for the first half of 2026, according to preliminary figures from the Cebu Port Authority (CPA).
Cargo throughput for the first half of the year reached 38.625 million metric tons (mt), a 2.4% increase from the 37.703 million mt posted in the same period in 2025 as both domestic and foreign cargoes recorded growth during the period.
Domestic cargoes, which accounted for 81.2% or 31.354 million mt of the total, grew 2.2% from 30.674 million mt last year.
Foreign cargoes likewise improved 3.4% to 7.271 million mt from 7.029 million mt.
Imports were 2.7% higher at 6.486 million mt from 6.317 million mt. Exports, meanwhile, recovered in the second quarter, resulting in a 10.4% increase in the first half to 785,168 mt from 711,171 mt last year.
READ: Cebu ports log higher cargo volume in Q1 2026
Container traffic at Cebu ports in the first half of the year rose 7.7% to 515,159 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) from 478,543 TEUs in the same period last year.
With a share of 49.2% of the total, domestic containers saw a double-digit growth of 12.1% to 253,422 TEUs from 226,142 TEUS.
Foreign containers, which contributed 49.9% to the total, likewise expanded 4.2% to 257,282 TEUs from 246,887 TEUs. It was driven by the 8.5% jump in imports to 123,912 TEUs from 114,171 TEUs, and 0.5% increase in exports to 133,370 TEUs from 132,716 TEUs.
Domestic transshipments, on the other hand, fell 19.2% to 4,456 TEUs from 5,514 TEUs.
Pier 1 recorded the biggest volume in the first half of the year with 190,583 TEUs or 37% of the total. Cebu International Port (CIP) was in second with 169,926 TEUs (33%) and Pier 4 with 129,738 TEUs 25.2%).
Roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) traffic, meanwhile, dropped 8.4% to 939,146 units in the first half of 2026 from 1.025 million units in the same period last year. Ro-Ro traffic in Cebu ports are mainly domestic traffic, with only 10 imports of heavy equipment in the first quarter of the year.
Passenger traffic was likewise down 5.6% to 10.497 million in the first half of the year from 11.124 million in the same half last year.
READ: CPA issues guidelines for uniform implementation of domestic cargo-handling rates
Cebu ports also received lower ship calls during the first half, recording 69,627 vessel calls, a 10.8% decline from 78,035 vessel calls in the same period last year. Domestic ship calls, which account for majority of ship calls, dropped 10.9% to 69,022 ships while foreign ship calls grew 9.4% to 605 ships.
CPA’s jurisdiction is composed of the Cebu baseport and its subports that are strategically located in different points of Cebu. Cebu baseport is composed of CIP and the domestic zone, while subports include the ports of Mandaue, Danao, Sta. Fe, Toledo and Argao.
A new port, the New Cebu International Container Port (NCICP), meanwhile, is being constructed in Tayug, Consolacion, some eight kilometers from the Cebu base port. Once operational, NCICP will handle international cargo operations while the Cebu baseport will service domestic and bulk and breakbulk shipments.
The new international terminal is seen as the long-term solution to growing volumes handled at CIP, which currently handles foreign cargoes at Cebu baseport.
