By Mark Edward Nero
Port of Oakland export volume reached a three-year high in October, soaring 20 percent over 2015 totals, per newly-released data.
The port reported Nov. 7 that it shipped the equivalent of 89,473 export containers last month, which was the most since Oct. 2013, as well as the fourth-largest monthly total in its history.
The figures cap a yearlong rally that has lifted Oakland exports 10 percent above 2015 volume year-to-date.
Last month was behind only March 2012 (91,613 TEUs), October 2013 (89,561 TEUs) and March 2011 (89,524 TEUs) for monthly containerized exports.
“Increased export volume is nothing new – we’ve reported gains in nine of the first 10 months of the year,” Port of Oakland Maritime Director John Driscoll said. “But the amount of volume growth highlights just how strong this rally is.”
A softer US dollar and healthy agricultural harvests helped drive export gains, according to the port. Growers in California’s Central, Napa and Salinas valleys depend on Oakland to reach markets in Asia.
The port also reported that containerized import cargo volume increased two percent in October. Overall loaded container volume – imports and exports – was up 11.4 percent last month.
