DUBAI - Ports operator DP World on Tuesday reported first-half 2015 gross container volumes up 4.1 percent on a like-for-like basis and up 4.2 percent on a reported basis. The Dubai-based company handled 30.6 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) with growth largely driven by Europe and United Arab Emirates terminals, it said in a statement. Business in the UAE grew by 6 percent, with Europe showing steady growth despite a difficult geopolitical environment, it said, without elaborating. “Full-year market volume growth is now forecast to be at approximately 3 percent and DP World is expected to perform ahead of the market,” Chief Executive Mohammed Sharaf said. Consolidated volumes, at terminals over which DP World has control, rose 3.5 percent to 14.4 million TEU. DP World said its port in Yarimca, Turkey, was on track to launch in the fourth quarter, while its proposed acquisition of Fairview Terminal in Canada was expected to close in the second half of 2015. It said it also expects to add 2 million TEU of capacity at Terminal 3 of its home port of Jebel Ali in the second half.