The twenty-foot container equivalent units (TEU) throughput of Shanghai port exceeded 26 million in 2007, surpassing Hong Kong to rank second globally, Shanghai Port and Shipping Bureau official said Friday.

The TEU throughput grew by more than 20 percent from 2006.

Local officials attributed the throughput growth to the port's expansion in recent years and the prosperous export-oriented business in the Yangtze River Delta, a major powerhouse of the country's economy.

The Shanghai port currently has 42 TEU piers with routes to more than 300 ports worldwide.

The cargo throughput of Shanghai port reached 560 million tons in 2007, ranking first globally for the third straight year.

The Port of Singapore is currently the world's largest in TEU throughput. It handled more than 28 million TEUs last year.

The municipal government authorities have been striving to build the Shanghai port into an international shipping center.