Morocco Tops Spain in Battle of Mediterranean Cargo Gateways

Spanish ports have in recent years dominated the freight traffic between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic, but a thriving Moroccan rival is now jeopardizing that hegemony.

Located just across the Straight of Gibraltar, Tanger Med handled almost 5.8 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units) last year, a more than 20% jump over 2019, making it the area’s busiest container port. It outpaced its most direct competitor, Spain’s Algeciras, whose freight traffic in the same period decreased 0.4% to about 5.1 million TEUS.