Shanghai International Port Group announced on 10 April that it aims to handle 29m teu this year, a growth of 3.6 per cent over last year. The company handled 28m teu in 2008, an increase of 7 per cent, and its profits were up nearly 27 per cent to Rmb4.6bn.

The company also said that it plans to double its transhipment ratio from the current five per cent.

It is also suspending talks with APMoller Maersk for a 40 per cent stake in Zeebrugge port in Belgium that Maersk has built, due to the worldwide economic downturn.