TEU
Abbreviation with 2 meanings
| Stands for | Twenty-foot equivalent unit |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 2 |
| Categories | Transportation & Travel, Government & Politics |
TEU has two meanings. It stands for Twenty-foot equivalent unit (maritime) or Treaty on European Union (world government).
Meanings of TEU at a glance
| # | TEU stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Twenty-foot equivalent unit | Transportation & Travel › Maritime |
| 2 | Treaty on European Union | Government & Politics › World Government |
1. Twenty-foot equivalent unit
Transportation & Travel · Maritime Abbreviations · also used in business
Standard measure of container shipping capacity, equal to one 20-foot shipping container. The largest container ships carry more than 24,000 TEU, and port throughput is reported in TEU.
Example: The Port of Los Angeles handled about 10 million TEU last year.
A standard 40-foot container counts as two TEU (one FEU). The measure is approximate because containers vary in height and weight. Shanghai is the world's busiest container port by TEU. Malcolm McLean's container shipping innovation in 1956 created the standardized box that TEU measures.
2. Treaty on European Union
Government & Politics · World Government Abbreviations
One of the two core treaties of the European Union, setting out its values, objectives, institutions and rules on membership and withdrawal. Article 50, used for Brexit, is in this treaty.
Example: The UK triggered Article 50 of the TEU on March 29, 2017.
It began as the Maastricht Treaty, signed in 1992 and in force from November 1993, which created the EU and paved the way for the euro. The Lisbon Treaty of 2007, in force from December 2009, substantially rewrote it. Article 7 provides a procedure for suspending a member state's rights.
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