Port of Long Beach expects to end 2018 with another cargo record

The Port of Long Beach logged 621,835 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of container cargo last month, setting the stage for a second consecutive calendar-year record.

Last month's performance pushed the year's total TEU count to 7,349,377, making it virtually certain the Port will eclipse its record of 7,544,507 TEUs set in 2017, port officials said in a press release.

Volumes have increased 7.3 percent year to date, they said.

Imports continued to outpace goods shipped overseas. Inbound cargo hit 319,877 TEUs, an increase of 0.2 percent, while exports shrank 8.4 percent to 115,774 TEUs. Empties returned to Asia swelled 11.4 percent to 186,183 TEUs.

Recent container trends — the growth of imports relative to exports, the large number of unloaded containers — illustrate how the higher tariffs imposed this year by the United States and China have impacted the flow of commerce, according to Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero.

"American retailers are stocking up on goods made in China to avoid anticipated higher tariffs," said Cordero. "You're seeing the opposite effect on the other side of the ocean. Chinese businesses seem to be already looking to other countries for goods and raw materials, meaning there's less demand for American exports and more empty containers are being shipped."

To learn more about the growth trends at the port, read this feature in the September 2018 issue of Progressive Railroading.