TRIESTE – The positive trend continues for the ports of the Veneto region. The first quarter of 2025 opened with a 4.3% increase in volumes handled in Venice and a sharp 29.3% surge in Chioggia compared to the same period last year.

This is confirmed by the North Adriatic Sea Port Authority, which highlights the overall solid performance following a year of growth in 2024. In the first quarter alone, 5.6 million tons of cargo were handled, along with 124,194 TEUs between January and March 2025.

Looking at the April 2024–March 2025 period, the port of Venice handled more than 24.3 million tons of goods, marking a 6.9% increase year-on-year. Adding the 863,000 tons moved through Chioggia, the total throughput of the Veneto port system surpassed the 25-million-ton threshold.

In Venice, solid bulk cargo showed the most significant growth, rising by 21.2% in the first quarter compared to the same period in 2024. Particularly strong was the 220% increase in grain traffic, along with higher volumes of feed, minerals, and cement—sectors that offset the now-structural decline in coal shipments, which are being phased out due to new energy policies. Cement traffic alone rose by about 63,000 tons (+16.1%), driven by construction demand linked to the progress of PNRR-funded projects and preparations for the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.

According to the Port Authority, the agri-food and steel sectors played a key role: the former grew by 41.9% with 180,000 tons moved in the quarter, and the latter by 15.5% with 152,000 tons. General cargo also rose (+1.4%) thanks to an 11.1% increase in container traffic, while Ro-Ro traffic remained virtually stable (-0.5%).

There was a sharp drop in cruise passenger numbers (-39.5% compared to the same period last year), although the 12-month figure from April 2024 to March 2025 shows a 4.7% increase for the port of Venice. In Chioggia, the decline in passenger traffic is attributed to the availability of larger cruise terminals elsewhere, although the city continues to serve a segment of the market that was nonexistent before 2021.

As for Chioggia’s cargo sector, there was a strong rise in general cargo volumes (+58.5%), mainly due to higher tonnage of steel products.

“2024 was a year of challenges in which the ports of Venice and Chioggia demonstrated the strength, energy and characteristics needed to remain competitive, even in a climate of geopolitical uncertainty—ensuring growth across all key sectors despite the repeated disruptions to global supply chains and the resulting cost and transit time increases,” said Fulvio Lino Di Blasio, president of the Veneto Port Authority.
“This resilience and ability to seize new opportunities is now confirmed by the positive data from the first quarter of 2025. Venice and Chioggia—Italy’s only regulated ports—remain strategic hubs for the country’s food, bulk, steel, and construction material traffic, as well as for exports of finished goods produced by the manufacturing sector in northeastern Italy.”