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Shanghai Port is expected to become the world's second largest port after Singapore with its annual freight topping 250 million tons by the end of the year.

The port of Shanghai handled a record 125 million tons of cargo in the first six months of the year, up 17.2 percent on a year-on-year basis. Its annual freight is set to reach 250 million tons, approaching Singapore's volume for 2001.

The number of containers handled by Shanghai Port totaled 3.84 million in the first half of the year, rising 30.9 percent over the same period last year.

The port authority estimates that it could handle 8 million or 8.2 million standard containers by the end of this year, approaching the volume of Kaohsiung, the fourth largest container port in the world.

Shanghai has opened container routes to more than 120 ports around the world. At present, a freight vessel sails from Shanghai for Europe or North America every day.

To maintain its status as an international shipping center, Shanghai plans to invest seven billion yuan (843 million US dollars) in port construction in the 2001-2005 period. Over 80 percent of the investment will be used to build new or expand existing container ports.

According to a port official, the volume of containers to be handled by Shanghai Port is estimated to top 10 million by 2003.