The Port of Grays Harbor says it’s on pace to set a new record for the number of vehicles exported this year. The increase, the port says, is due to a growing demand in Asia for US-made vehicles.
Through October, more than 30,000 North American-made vehicles have been shipped through the port, already surpassing the roughly 21,000 that passed through during all of 2010.
The port estimates it’s on pace to see about 37,000 cars shipped out during the year, with the prime destination being China, which has become the world’s largest automobile market. Demand for North American-made cars, particularly Chryslers, has exploded in the country in recent years and is expected to rise 10 percent in 2012.
The port’s export business, which was launched in 2009, is handled by Pasha Automotive Services, which receives the vehicles after they’re delivered to the port via BNSF and Union Pacific railways from Midwest assembly plants.