Aerial photo taken on Nov 3, 2021 shows the container dock of Yangshan Port in Shanghai, East China. [Photo/Xinhua]

SHANGHAI -- The container throughput of Shanghai Port exceeded 47 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2021, ranking first globally for 12 consecutive years despite the COVID-19 impact on the shipping industry, port data showed Saturday.

Last year, the port handled 32 million TEUs in foreign trade and 6.3 million TEUs in domestic trade. The throughput of international transit containers at the port exceeded 6 million TEUs for the first time, or a year-on-year increase of 13.4 percent, according to the Shanghai International Port Group Co Ltd.

Technological support such as automatic terminals and intelligent heavy trucks has played an important role in achieving the growth amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a port source said.

The port is speeding up its digital transformation and production mode transformation to improve the operation potential and ensure the stability of the industrial chain and supply chain, the source added.