Cargo handling in November confirms expectations of a new annual record at the Port of Santos

The Port of Santos maintained its consolidated growth pace throughout 2025 and once again posted historic cargo-handling records in November. The month closed with 16.13 million tonnes, the highest figure ever recorded for November, while the year-to-date total reached 171.62 million tonnes, also a record for the period.

With this performance, only 7.4 million tonnes are needed for the Port to surpass the 2024 annual record of 179.8 million tonnes, reinforcing expectations of a new historic milestone by year-end.

Container handling also showed strong growth. The year-to-date total for 2025 has reached 5.4 million TEU, an 8% increase over 2024 and a new all-time record.

“This is an expected result, but extremely significant. It confirms the urgency of expanding the Port of Santos’ Poligonal area, whose formalization will take place in January, as well as the continuous reinforcement of access infrastructure, such as channel deepening and the construction of the perimeter avenues,” said Anderson Pomini, President of the Santos Port Authority (APS).

Compared with November 2024, total growth was 13.9%:

Among shipped cargoes, sugar, corn, and soybeans each exceeded 2 million tonnes, leading the month’s performance.

On the import side, fertilizers stood out, with volumes above 1 million tonnes.

In containers, November was also the best month in the Port’s history, with 489.15 thousand TEU, a 5.3% increase compared with the same month of 2024 (464.7 thousand TEU).

From January to November, the Port of Santos complex handled more than 171.2 million tonnes, a 2.7% increase compared with the same period in 2024:

In the container segment, cumulative volume reached 5.4 million TEU, consolidating 8% growth and a new historical record.

Below is a historical overview of container exports and imports via the Port of Santos since January 2022. The chart was prepared using DataLiner data:

Source: DataLiner (Click here to request a demo)

Once again, agribusiness played a central role in the Port’s performance. The cargoes with the largest shares were:

A further highlight was pulp, which recorded 20.3% growth in 2025, reaching 8.9 million tonnes handled.

Source: Port of Santos