Cargo volumes at the Port of Los Angeles, the nation's busiest container port, slipped just over 5 percent in August compared to August 2010, and virtually eliminated the port's calendar year-to-date growth.
While total box numbers and import box numbers for the month were down, the port scored a significant double-digit percentage increase in imports over the same period last year.
Port officials reported handling a total of 723,171 TEUs in August, a drop of 5.3 percent over August 2010.
On the import side, a critical number as the port moves into the peak shipping season as orders are filled for holiday goods, the port dipped 5.8 percent in August, with 376,190 loaded inbound TEUs handled.
Exports were a different matter entirely. The port moved a total of 184,232 loaded outbound TEUs in August, a massive 24.8 percent jump over export numbers posted in August of last year.
The port remains up a bare 0.4 percent for the calendar year-to-date, moving into virtual parity with the same eight-month period in 2010. The port has moved a total of 5,178,724 TEUs in the January to August period.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
