Doha Port has registered a steady increase in the number of incoming traffic during the first half of this year. The port witnessed a 50 percent increase in the visits of livestock ships and 28 percent increase in containers compared to the corresponding period in 2007. To meet the country’s booming demands, a total of 595 vessels visited the port during the first half of this year, including 105 containers and vehicle ships, 139 general cargos, 25 stray ships, 5 livestock ships and seven passenger ships. In addition, a total of 582 small wooden vessels and 1000-odd supplies and service ships; and 155 flat cargo ships also docked at Doha Port during the period, Saif Al Sweedi, Director, Port Operations, Customs and Port General Authority, said. However, the period registered 18 percent decrease in the flat cargo ships' traffic, compared to the first half of 2007. A 23 percent decrease has been registered in the inflow of food stuff compared to the corresponding period. A twelve percent dip was also recorded in the arrival of manufactured goods during the period. The daily average movement of containers in groups during the first six months at Doha Port has been estimated as 1, 115. The port witnessed a 29 percent increase in the incoming filled containers. The launches cargo carried goods weighing a total of 83,538 tonnes, 48 percent higher than the first half of 2007. "But a quick analysis of these numbers proves that there is a large increase in number of ships reaching Doha port, which confirms the high reliability of the port. The port's better infrastructure facilities and the state-of-the-art equipment and, of course, the efforts of the naval service department in docking the vessels are among other contributing factors that have attracted more vessels to the port during this year", Al Sweedi said. The export of general goods reached 7,502 tonnes in the middle of 2008, with an increase of 247 per- cent compared to the same period in 2007. The port has recorded a 58 percent rise in the total number of passengers passing through the port. A total of 87 cases were registered in connection with the smuggling of banned products. The smuggling attempts were made to carry products like drugs, weapons, animals and artifacts. The Peninsula

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