Beijing said the fall in container throughput volume at mainland ports would ease to 7 per cent for the full year, largely because of growing domestic trade.
Container throughput at the mainland's major ports will drop to 120 million 20-foot equivalent units (teu) this year from last year, compared with a 7.8 per cent decline in the first three quarters and an 11 per cent dip in the first half, according to the Ministry of Transport's website.
Catering for expanding domestic trade is the major factor mitigating the drop in throughput.
However, Shanghai and Shenzhen, the biggest and the second-largest mainland ports and ones that mainly handle ocean cargo, will still report a double-digit decline in throughput last month.
According to preliminary operational figures, Shanghai Port handled 2.17 million teu, a decline of 9.7 per cent from last year, widening from a 5.6 per cent drop in September.
Shenzhen Port also saw a 10 per cent year-on-year decline last month, with 1.63 million teu in containers being moved, compared with a 14.8 per cent drop in September, according to industry sources.
Both ports must brace for double-digit drops for the year if the throughput figures do not improve substantially for the rest of the year.