The Port of Los Angeles finished calendar year 2012 with a
1.7 percent increase in overall cargo volumes compared to 2011. The total
number of 20-foot equivalent containers for 2012 was 8.07 million, compared to
7.94 million in 2011.
This marks the third time in the port’s history that it was
able to eclipse eight million TEUs in a single calendar year, with the most
recent occasion being in 2007.
But despite the year-over-year gains, LA ended 2012
with a decline in monthly volumes for December. The number of TEUs shipped by
port terminals during the month were down 9.4 percent, decreasing from December
2011’s 649,468, TEUs to 588,154 in December 2012. Imports fell 6.7 percent to
296,874 TEUs in December 2012 compared to 318,355 TEUs the previous year, and exports
last month were down 16.4 percent to 147,417 TEUs, compared to 176,530 TEUs in
December 2011.
Combined, total loaded imports and exports for December 2012
dropped 10.2 percent, from 494,886 TEUs in December 2011 to 444,291 TEUs in
December 2012. Factoring in empties, which decreased 6.9 percent year over
year, overall December 2012 volumes dropped 9.4 percent last month compared to the
same month in 2011.
For the fiscal year to date, which began July 1, LA has
moved 4.06 million TEUs, an 8. 75 percent increase from the same six months
during the prior fiscal year.
Current and past data container counts for the Port of Los
Angeles may be found at
