By Karen Robes Meeks
Last month, the Port of Los Angeles handled 728,918 TEUs, a 12.4 percent drop from the same period a year ago, according to statistics released Tuesday.
Year over year, imports fell 12.2 percent to 371,350 TEUs while exports dropped 9.2 percent to 138,545 TEUs, marking a 13th straight month of decline. Empty containers also fell 14.8 percent to 219,024 TEUs.
Despite these decreases, the port is reporting a 0.4 percent uptick in overall volumes through the first 11 months of the year compared to 2018, a record year for the port.
“As we expected, 2019 winds down with volumes weakening, due largely to the US-China trade war which continues to negatively impact American consumers, manufacturers and US supply chain jobs,” said Port Executive Director Gene Seroka. “Although we anticipate tariffs will linger well into 2020, we will continue to aggressively invest in our physical and digital infrastructure through this economic cycle.”
