JAXPORT logs record container cargo in FY2016

The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) moved a record amount of container cargo in fiscal-year 2016, the authority announced yesterday.

The port moved 968,279 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30. The previous record was set in 2014, when JAXPORT moved 936,972 TEUs, according to a port press release.

Port officials attributed the business growth in part to the Asian container trade, which is the port's fastest growing segment of container cargo business. In FY2016, the port posted a 19 percent increase — to 336,791 containers moved — compared with 283,164 the previous year.

In addition, the expansion of existing and new services calling on the port's Blount Island Marine Terminal, including the recently added 2M Alliance, contributed to the growth. The Asian sector accounted for 35 percent of JAXPORT's total cargo container business in 2016.

When combined with the containers moving through its private terminals, the port moves more than 1.2 million containers annually, making it the largest port complex in Florida, JAXPORT officials said.

Also adding to the port's increase in business during FY2016 was double-digit growth in automobile imports. The port moved 467,898 imported vehicles, up 19 percent over last year.

Other FY2016 highlights include:
• Breakbulk cargoes (noncontainerized cargo such as fertilizer, metals, forest products and perishables) rose 22 percent over the previous year, with nearly 888,000 tons shipped. A large portion of the growth was due to paper imports from Finland and wood pulp imports from Brazil.
• Puerto Rican container business increased nearly 7 percent over the prior year.
• JAXPORT achieved its 16th consecutive year of operating revenue growth, earning $59.7 million, up 6 percent over FY2015.