The Port of Tokyo handled 367,388 TEUs of container traffic in May, a marginal year-on-year rise of 0.1 per cent, according to a report published by Port Technology International drawing on preliminary statistics from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.
The total comprised 263,288 TEUs of loaded containers and 104,100 TEUs of empty containers. The loaded volume fell by 0.9 per cent compared with the same month a year earlier while empty container movements increased by 2.7 per cent.
Port Technology International published the figures on 28 August 2026 and attributed them to preliminary monthly statistics released by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's Bureau of Port and Harbor. The bureau's data provided the numerical breakdown cited in the report.
The near‑flat overall movement masks a divergence between loaded and empty box flows. Loaded containers account for roughly three quarters of the month's volume while empties make up the remainder, and the two streams moved in opposite directions on a year‑on‑year basis.
Changing proportions between loaded and empty containers can alter terminal workload and yard dynamics even where aggregate tonnage is stable. The preliminary figures do not extend into commodity detail or vessel calls and therefore limit what can be said about the cargo mix behind the shifts.
Breakdown of volumes
May's reported total of 367,388 TEUs equals the sum of the two component categories released by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's bureau: 263,288 TEUs loaded and 104,100 TEUs empty. Those component figures form the basis for the percentage changes quoted in the Port Technology International article.
The bureau described the statistics as preliminary. Port Technology International presented the totals and the year‑on‑year percentages but did not publish further commentary from the metropolitan bureau in the item cited.
Source and timing
Port Technology International's item is dated 28 August 2026 and makes plain that the numbers were provided by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's Bureau of Port and Harbor. The port authority characterises the release as preliminary statistics for May.
The published dataset reported here is limited to container unit counts and the simple split between loaded and empty TEUs. No supplementary breakdowns for loaded exports versus loaded imports, commodity groups, terminal operator throughput or vessel call schedules were included in the report summarised by Port Technology International.
Taken at face value, the numbers record a broadly stable month of container activity at the port with small opposing movements in the loaded and empty categories; the metropolitan bureau's classification and the preliminary nature of the figures should guide interpretation until finalised statistics are released.