377 thousand tons. That is all the freight that moved through the Port of Tripoli in the first quarter of 2026, a 37.89% drop from the 607 thousand tons handled in the same period last year.
March Caps a Weak Quarter
The slowdown extended into the final month of the quarter. Total shipped goods fell to 112 thousand tons in March, down 6.67% from 120 thousand tons in February. Imports made up almost all of that activity, accounting for 96.43% of total freight at 108 thousand tons. Exports contributed a meager 3.57%, or 4 thousand tons.
Fewer Ships, Fewer Cars, Less Revenue
The decline was not limited to cargo weight. The number of vessels calling at the port dropped 29.29% year-on-year to 140. Car imports took the hardest hit, falling 58.86% to just 223 cars, a loss of 319 vehicles compared to the first quarter of 2025.
The financial impact followed the same path. Port-related revenues reached $4.21 million by the end of March 2026, down 31.82% from $6.17 million in the first quarter of 2025.
An Import Gateway Running on One Engine
The March figures show how dependent Tripoli's port has become on inbound trade. With exports at under 4% of total freight, nearly every ton crossing the docks is coming in, not going out. That leaves the port's activity, and its revenue, tied almost entirely to Lebanon's appetite for imported goods, which the first quarter numbers suggest is shrinking.
