The St. Lawrence Seaway today announced a 7.3% increase in year-to-date dry bulk cargo shipments, despite an overall 6.1% decrease in Seaway-wide total tonnage compared to this time last year.

The top-performing cargos through September 2019 include:
Salt — 2,247,000 metric tons; 14.9% increase
Cement & Clinkers — 1,394,000 metric tons; 2.2% increase
Coke — 929,000 metric tons; 10.9% increase
Gypsum — 370,000 metric tons; 21.8% increase
Ores & Concentrates — 244,000 metric tons; 47.6% increase
“As we head into the busiest few months of the navigation season, robust cargo movements continue at our ports and through the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System,” said Craig Middlebrook, Deputy Administrator of the U.S. Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation. “Project cargo continues to be strong and heavy machinery is a leading commodity, with the ports of Cleveland, Toledo, Duluth, Detroit, and Manistee (MI) all reporting September shipments of machinery from foreign markets.”
In addition to an exceptional month for dry bulk in September, American ports saw several noteworthy international Seaway shipments. One port in particular — the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority — handled bulk sugar from Mexico, marking their first shipment of sugar since 2015.
“The same vessel that brought sugar from Mexico to the Port of Toledo sailed up the Maumee River and loaded a combination of soybeans, distiller dry grain (DDG) and corn gluten meal (CGM). This single vessel discharge and reload is a great example of the diverse cargo mix handled at the Port of Toledo,” said Joseph Cappel, VP of Business Development for the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. “With the ability to match export cargos with incoming shipments, the Port of Toledo can provide an efficient and cost-effective solution for shippers.”
Three additional noteworthy international shipments from September:
· Port of Cleveland received shipments of steel from Germany, Belgium and Sweden.
· Port of Ogdensburg received a shipment of salt from Chile.
· Port of Detroit received machinery from South Korea.