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The Port of Long Beach, Calif., boosted both import and export container traffic in June, helping to nudge up total volume 0.2 percent to 555,359 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) compared with June 2011.

Imports rose 3.5 percent to 280,526 TEUs and exports increased 5.6 percent to 133,649 TEUs. The port handled 141,184 TEUs of empty containers — more than in any other month this year, but still 9.8 percent fewer compared with the year-ago period.

“June was the busiest month [so far in] calendar-year 2012,” port officials said in a prepared statement. “Through the first half of the year, overall container traffic is down 5 percent … partly due to the elimination of several niche service strings that had called at the port last year.”

Meanwhile, the Port of Los Angeles in June handled 696,848 TEUs, up 8.8 percent compared with June 2011.

Imports rose 6 percent to 353,931 TEUs, exports climbed 6.9 percent to 174,418 TEUs, total loaded container volume increased 6.3 percent to 528,349 TEUs and total empty container volume jumped 17.2 percent to 168,499 TEUs.

In the year’s first half, the port handled 4,010,204 TEUs, up 6.5 percent compared with the same 2011 period.