Despite issues with traffic congestion during the fourth
quarter of the year, 2014 turned out to be a good year for cargo at the Port of
Long Beach, according to data the port released Jan. 20.
Cargo container trade climbed 1.3 percent at the port in
2014 compared to 2013, bringing the port its third-busiest calendar year ever,
behind the peak periods of 2006-2007.
Last year’s overall volume rose to 6.82 million TEUs.
Imports increased 1.8 percent to 3,517,514 TEUs, according to port data, while exports
declined 5.9 percent to 1.6 million TEUs and the number of empty containers
being sent overseas to be loaded with cargo rose 8.2 percent to nearly 1.7
million TEUs.
In December 2014 alone however, the numbers weren’t so
great. Port terminals moved 567,237 TEUs through the harbor during the month, a
2.6 percent decrease compared to December 2013. Also, imports dropped 5.1
percent to 276,516 TEUs and exports fell 11.2 percent to 131,496 TEUs. On the
bright side, the number of empties rose to 159,225 TEUs, an increase of 11.5
percent.
Coincidentally, 2014 was also the third-busiest year ever
for the adjoining Port of Los Angeles, according to data. Container volumes at
the port increased six percent over the previous year, with total volumes
reaching 8.34 million TEUs, just behind the 8.4 million TEUs moved in 2007 and
8.5 million in 2006.
The latest monthly cargo numbers for the Port of Long Beach
can be seen at http://www.polb.com/economics/stats/latest_teus.asp.
For additional details on the cargo numbers, visit www.polb.com/stats.
