The growth in container volumes experienced by Europe in 2010 will not be repeated this year, according to a new report.

The latest Global Port Tracker: North Europe Trade Outlook forecasts that percentage increases will return to more "modest levels".

According to the report, produced by Hackett Associates and the Bremen Institute of Shipping Economics and Logistics (ISL), container volumes ended 2010 on a high.

November volumes, excluding transhipment and empties, reached three million teu, an increase of 10% year on year. But this was down 5.5% on volumes reported in October �C although this was due to the expected winter slowdown.

The report suggests that last year, imports would total 21.1 million teu, up 13.8% on 2009, while exports would hit 15.4 million teu, up 9%.

It predicts double-digit growth for exports in January and imports for February, but overall volumes in 2011 are expected to tail-off into high single-digit year-on-year growth for volumes in both directions.

Ben Hackett, founder of Hackett Associates, said: "We should not expect to see a repeat of last year's growth for imports, as this was the result of the post-recessionary period. This year will be impacted by austerity measures of European governments."

Longer-term forecasts suggest incoming and outgoing volumes will decline over two quarters, before growth of 6.6% and 5.4% in imports for the second and third quarters respectively, and growth of 5.8% and 3% for exports