Trade volume figures for the first quarter of 2012 suggest that growth will be slower than in 2011.
Deepsea imports to Europe are forecast to increase by 2.3% in 2012, with a 2.8% gain anticipated in North Europe and a 1.3% gain projected in the Mediterranean and Black Sea region. North European imports in Q1 compared with Q4 were virtually unchanged, but were down by 2% on the same period in 2011. Exports, however, were up nearly 6% year-on-year, but down 1% on the previous quarter.