Volume of cargo handled at Korea’s seaports hit a record high last year thanks to improving economic and business conditions, the transportation ministry said Wednesday.

The nation’s seaports handled an all-time high of 1.2 billion tons of cargo last year, up 11.8 percent from a year earlier, according to a report by the ministry. In December, cargo handling also jumped to a monthly record of 110 million tons, the report showed.

Cargo handled at Busan, the nation’s largest seaport, rose 16.2 percent, while Gwangyang port saw a 14.7 percent increase, the report showed. The port in Pyeongtaek-Dangjin, located near Seoul, also posted a 49.4 percent rise in cargo handling last year. 

(Yonhap News)