By Mark Edward Nero
Container cargo flow through the Port of Long Beach increased nearly eight percent last month compared to the same month last year, leading to the busiest April in nine years, according to newly released data.
A total of 614,860 TEUs of containerized cargo moved through the port in April, a 7.9 percent jump from the same month in 2014. Imports reached 317,376 TEUs during the month, a 7.3 percent increase from last year.
Although exports fell 6.1 percent to 137,546 TEUs, empty containers surged 25.3 percent to 159,938 TEUs, according to the data.
In April, the terminals continued working through the backlog left over from the winter’s congestion in San Pedro Bay. By the end of the month, no more container ships were waiting at anchor to come into the Port of Long Beach.
Through the first four months of 2015, Long Beach cargo numbers are essentially flat compared to the same period last year, down 0.3 percent overall, mostly due to congestion issues during January and February.
For the fiscal year to date, Long Beach has moved 3.81 million TEUs, a 0.1 percent drop from the 3.82 million TEUs port terminals saw during the same seven-month period in FY 2014.
The latest monthly cargo numbers are available at http://www.polb.com/economics/stats/latest_teus.asp.
More details on the cargo numbers can be found at www.polb.com/stats.
