By Karen Robes Meeks
The Port of Oakland reached its highest volume of containerized imports in nearly two years, according to latest statistics released by the port June 9.
Imports reached 82,440 TEUs last month, a 1.4 percent jump from May 2016, which saw 81,293 TEUs. It was the most the port took in since August 2015, when it moved 82,492 TEUs.
“Our import volume has been up four consecutive months,” said Port of Oakland Maritime Director John Driscoll. “That’s encouraging as we head into the traditionally busy summer-fall peak season.”
About 48 percent of containers that move through Oakland are imports.
Meanwhile, the port handled 78,585 TEUs in exports, down 6.4 percent from 83,969 TEUs.
In terms of overall volume, which include imports, exports and empty containers, Oakland handled about 211,020 TEUs, just about the same amount of cargo it moved in May 2016 with 211,769 TEUs.
The port, however, is encouraged by the 2.2 percent growth of its overall volume in the first five months in 2017. Although the number of ships coming to Oakland was down 7 percent, the vessels that are visiting are much larger. Weekly visits to Oakland include megaships that can carry up to 14,000 TEUs.
Showing posts with label imports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label imports. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Analysis: Good News for California Exporters
Despite the inert and lackluster forward movement of the national economy, exporters in California turned in their 20th consecutive month of vigorous growth in June, according to an analysis by Beacon Economics of foreign trade data released last week by the United States Commerce Department.
California firms moved $13.83 billion in exports shipments during June, a gain of 13 percent over the $12.25 billion reported in June of last year.
"Adjusting for inflation, California’s export trade has firmly returned to its pre-recession peaks," Beacon Economics’ International Trade Adviser Jock O’Connell said.
"More importantly, on a seasonally-adjusted basis, California’s export trade remained on an upward trajectory through the second quarter of 2011, despite the economic and financial tribulations several of our leading trading partners have been enduring," O’Connell said.
According to Beacon's analysis, the importance of this positive news should not be under-estimated: Gearing up to meet export demand is one of the few incentives US corporations have for investing in the domestic economy.
"The primary source of growth for the US over the past year has been through the export sector," Beacon Economics’ Founding Partner Christopher Thornberg said.
"Export trade is key in re-balancing the domestic economy given the massive trade deficit that opened in the middle part of the last decade."
Trade in California traditionally picks up in the second half of the year and Beacon Economics expects continued growth in the state's export trade during this period.
"The upside of a battered dollar is that California products, from farm produce to pharmaceuticals, are at bargain prices in the world market," O’Connell said.
"The recent drop in oil prices doesn't hurt."
However, the analysis pointed out, the picture was not as positive on the import side of the ledger. The number of loaded inbound shipping containers arriving at the state's seaports in June was down by 5.5 percent from June, 2010, while import tonnage through California's airports declined by 11.7 percent.
California firms moved $13.83 billion in exports shipments during June, a gain of 13 percent over the $12.25 billion reported in June of last year.
"Adjusting for inflation, California’s export trade has firmly returned to its pre-recession peaks," Beacon Economics’ International Trade Adviser Jock O’Connell said.
"More importantly, on a seasonally-adjusted basis, California’s export trade remained on an upward trajectory through the second quarter of 2011, despite the economic and financial tribulations several of our leading trading partners have been enduring," O’Connell said.
According to Beacon's analysis, the importance of this positive news should not be under-estimated: Gearing up to meet export demand is one of the few incentives US corporations have for investing in the domestic economy.
"The primary source of growth for the US over the past year has been through the export sector," Beacon Economics’ Founding Partner Christopher Thornberg said.
"Export trade is key in re-balancing the domestic economy given the massive trade deficit that opened in the middle part of the last decade."
Trade in California traditionally picks up in the second half of the year and Beacon Economics expects continued growth in the state's export trade during this period.
"The upside of a battered dollar is that California products, from farm produce to pharmaceuticals, are at bargain prices in the world market," O’Connell said.
"The recent drop in oil prices doesn't hurt."
However, the analysis pointed out, the picture was not as positive on the import side of the ledger. The number of loaded inbound shipping containers arriving at the state's seaports in June was down by 5.5 percent from June, 2010, while import tonnage through California's airports declined by 11.7 percent.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Retail Imports to Maintain Strong Volumes at Major Ports
Analysts are predicting the nation’s major retail container ports will continue to post strong import container volumes in March, indicating growing confidence of increased sales by retailers. At the same time, decreased oil production from North African is driving up the cost of oil and is likely to cause an increase in shipping costs.
Foreign import cargo volumes at the nation’s major retail container ports are expected to be up 11 percent in March over the same month last year, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released Monday by the National Retail Federation.
The monthly report, produced for NRF by the consulting firm Hackett Associates, covers the US ports of Long Beach/Los Angeles, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; Charleston, Hampton Roads, New York/New Jersey, and Savannah on the East Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast.
“These numbers show solid increases over last year and are evidence that our nation’s economic recovery is continuing to build momentum,” NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. “Increases in imports are a clear sign that retailers expect sales to continue to climb in the next several months.”
US ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.2 million TEUs in January, the latest month for which actual numbers are available. That was up 5 percent from December and 12 percent from January 2010. It was the 14th month in a row to show a year-over-year improvement after December 2009 broke a 28-month streak of year-over-year declines.
February, the report points out, is traditionally the slowest month of the year and is estimated at 1.12 million TEU–an increase of 12 percent over February 2010. March is forecast at 1.19 million TEU, up 11 percent from a year ago; April at 1.24 million TEU, up 9 percent; May at 1.32 million TEU, up 5 percent; June at 1.39 million TEU, up 5 percent; and July at 1.45 million TEU, up 5 percent.
The report predicts that the first half of 2011 will come in at 7.5 million TEU, up 9 percent from the first half of 2010.
In addition, the North African political turmoil is impacting the cost of oil and possibly the costs of shipping.
“Oil supply is going down as a number of nations have dropped out of the production cycle,” Hackett said. “Freight rates have been decreasing but that will not last long as fuel costs are factored in.”
Foreign import cargo volumes at the nation’s major retail container ports are expected to be up 11 percent in March over the same month last year, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released Monday by the National Retail Federation.
The monthly report, produced for NRF by the consulting firm Hackett Associates, covers the US ports of Long Beach/Los Angeles, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; Charleston, Hampton Roads, New York/New Jersey, and Savannah on the East Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast.
“These numbers show solid increases over last year and are evidence that our nation’s economic recovery is continuing to build momentum,” NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. “Increases in imports are a clear sign that retailers expect sales to continue to climb in the next several months.”
US ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.2 million TEUs in January, the latest month for which actual numbers are available. That was up 5 percent from December and 12 percent from January 2010. It was the 14th month in a row to show a year-over-year improvement after December 2009 broke a 28-month streak of year-over-year declines.
February, the report points out, is traditionally the slowest month of the year and is estimated at 1.12 million TEU–an increase of 12 percent over February 2010. March is forecast at 1.19 million TEU, up 11 percent from a year ago; April at 1.24 million TEU, up 9 percent; May at 1.32 million TEU, up 5 percent; June at 1.39 million TEU, up 5 percent; and July at 1.45 million TEU, up 5 percent.
The report predicts that the first half of 2011 will come in at 7.5 million TEU, up 9 percent from the first half of 2010.
In addition, the North African political turmoil is impacting the cost of oil and possibly the costs of shipping.
“Oil supply is going down as a number of nations have dropped out of the production cycle,” Hackett said. “Freight rates have been decreasing but that will not last long as fuel costs are factored in.”
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Senators Raise Export Service Concerns With FMC
Congressional members of an agriculture committee are raising concerns with the Federal Maritime Commission that United States agriculture exporters are suffering severe service issues with foreign-flagged ocean carriers.
The concerns were raised in a June 16 letter to FMC chair Richard Lidinsky, Jr., from Sen. Blanche Lincoln, chair of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, and ranking minority committee member Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga.
The senators noted that while the administration in their opinions has outlined admirable goals to increase U.S. exports, the chain of trade must function fairly and efficiently for American shippers to get agricultural products to key overseas markets.
"According to constituent reports and recent media stories, U.S. exporters may be forced to wait as long as a month to secure space on an ocean carrier compared to earlier wait times of about a week," the senators said in the letter.
"These service interruptions, along with frequent rate hikes, are occurring despite the fact that most U.S. shippers enter into 12-month service contracts with the ocean carriers for fixed rates during the period. These contracts are supposed to ensure that the carriers will provide the necessary weekly equipment and vessel space consistent with each individual agreement. Unfortunately, it has come to our attention that carriers are now routinely failing to honor these contracts. Such breaches lead to increased costs for U.S. agricultural exporters and, in some cases, lost export opportunities."
The senators went on to state that the U.S. agriculture industry's ability to expand overseas seas and boost incomes is being threatened by the service problems.
"The ability of our agricultural exporters to expand markets abroad is dependent on adequate oceangoing vessel capacity and container availability at inland locations," said the letter. "If this critical link in the export chain does not function fairly or efficiently, our shippers will be unable to get agricultural products to key overseas markets. This will not only cost U.S. farmers and ranchers new export opportunities, but could cost them existing overseas customers."
The senators also praised the ongoing FMC investigation into ship capacity and how it impacts U.S. importers and exporters. The FMC is set to discuss the preliminary findings of that investigation in a closed session on June 23.
"It is our hope that the global economic recovery and improvements in fleet capacity will mitigate future problems," said the senators.
"We would also appreciate your perspective concerning the specific authorities that the commission has available to ensure the ocean carriers' honor their service contracts with U.S. shippers, including the ability to penalize carriers for egregious practices. If you lack such tools, we would welcome a discussion of ways to potentially strengthen the Commission's authority with the carriers," the senators wrote.
The concerns were raised in a June 16 letter to FMC chair Richard Lidinsky, Jr., from Sen. Blanche Lincoln, chair of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, and ranking minority committee member Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga.
The senators noted that while the administration in their opinions has outlined admirable goals to increase U.S. exports, the chain of trade must function fairly and efficiently for American shippers to get agricultural products to key overseas markets.
"According to constituent reports and recent media stories, U.S. exporters may be forced to wait as long as a month to secure space on an ocean carrier compared to earlier wait times of about a week," the senators said in the letter.
"These service interruptions, along with frequent rate hikes, are occurring despite the fact that most U.S. shippers enter into 12-month service contracts with the ocean carriers for fixed rates during the period. These contracts are supposed to ensure that the carriers will provide the necessary weekly equipment and vessel space consistent with each individual agreement. Unfortunately, it has come to our attention that carriers are now routinely failing to honor these contracts. Such breaches lead to increased costs for U.S. agricultural exporters and, in some cases, lost export opportunities."
The senators went on to state that the U.S. agriculture industry's ability to expand overseas seas and boost incomes is being threatened by the service problems.
"The ability of our agricultural exporters to expand markets abroad is dependent on adequate oceangoing vessel capacity and container availability at inland locations," said the letter. "If this critical link in the export chain does not function fairly or efficiently, our shippers will be unable to get agricultural products to key overseas markets. This will not only cost U.S. farmers and ranchers new export opportunities, but could cost them existing overseas customers."
The senators also praised the ongoing FMC investigation into ship capacity and how it impacts U.S. importers and exporters. The FMC is set to discuss the preliminary findings of that investigation in a closed session on June 23.
"It is our hope that the global economic recovery and improvements in fleet capacity will mitigate future problems," said the senators.
"We would also appreciate your perspective concerning the specific authorities that the commission has available to ensure the ocean carriers' honor their service contracts with U.S. shippers, including the ability to penalize carriers for egregious practices. If you lack such tools, we would welcome a discussion of ways to potentially strengthen the Commission's authority with the carriers," the senators wrote.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Analysts: Import Volumes to Rise 25% in First Half of 2010
Analysts are predicting import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports, including those in Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma, will increase 25 percent during the first half of 2010 compared with the same period a year ago.
The predictions, contained within the monthly Global Port Tracker report released Monday by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates, differed sharply from the view of some economists that are predicting a W-shaped economic recovery– with another dip in the economy following a slight uptick.
“This forecast assumes that we are not in a double-dip recession and that a recovery is underway,” said Hackett Associates founder Ben Hackett. “Although 2009 saw decreased import activity levels, the forecast for 2010 points towards growth.”
US ports covered in the report handled 1.09 million TEUs in December, the latest month for which actual numbers are available. In addition to the West Coast ports, the report also covers the East Coast ports of New York/New Jersey, Hampton Roads, Charleston and Savannah, as well as the Port of Houston on the Gulf Coast.
The December import numbers were unchanged from November but up 2.6 percent from December 2008, breaking a 28-month streak during which monthly totals at the ports covered were lower than the same month the year before. The ports ended 2009 with a total import volume of 12.7 million TEU, a 17 percent dip from the 15.2 million TEU handled in 2008 and the lowest import volume numbers since the 12.5 million TEUs reported in 2003.
Despite the year-end decline in total import volume, the Global Port Tracker predicted that January import numbers would increase to 1.19 million TEUs, a 17 percent increase over the year-ago period, and February import would climb 30 percent of the same period in 2008 to 1.1 million TEUs.
March import numbers are forecast at 1.18 million TEUs, up 23 percent, April is forecast at 1.25 million TEUs, up 27 percent, May at 1.3 million TEUs, up 26 percent, and June at 1.38 million TEUs, up 36 percent.
These estimates would put total import volumes for the first six months of 2010 at 7.4 million TEU, up 25 percent from the January to June period last year.
“This is a dramatic turnaround over what we’ve seen during the past two years,” NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. “Increases in import volumes don’t correspond directly with dollar volumes in sales, so caution has to be exercised when looking at these numbers. But retailers are clearly expecting to move more merchandise this year.”
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Honda Breaks Ground on New Richmond Import Facility
The American arm of Japan-based Honda Motor Co. broke ground Tuesday on a new hybrid-car import facility that will make the Port of Richmond, California one of only three West Coast ports of entry for the carmaker's Japan-manufactured vehicles.
The 80-acre facility promises to pump more than $85 million into the local economy over the 15-year deal with the city. The Honda Port of Entry Project and the completed facility will also create about 250 jobs, according to American Honda Motor Co., of which 30 percent must go--under terms of the deal--to people that live in Richmond.
As part of the deal, the city will spend about $37 million to build new rail tracks at the facility location and upgrade existing tracks. Currently, Honda ships autos destined for the Bay Area through the Port of San Diego and trucks the vehicles to Northern California. In addition to Honda hybrids going to customers in the Bay Area, the Richmond facility will, according to the developers, also be utilized to ship the Honda vehicles via rail to the entire southern half of the country.
When completed, Honda expects to ship about 145,000 cars a year through the facility.
The 80-acre facility promises to pump more than $85 million into the local economy over the 15-year deal with the city. The Honda Port of Entry Project and the completed facility will also create about 250 jobs, according to American Honda Motor Co., of which 30 percent must go--under terms of the deal--to people that live in Richmond.
As part of the deal, the city will spend about $37 million to build new rail tracks at the facility location and upgrade existing tracks. Currently, Honda ships autos destined for the Bay Area through the Port of San Diego and trucks the vehicles to Northern California. In addition to Honda hybrids going to customers in the Bay Area, the Richmond facility will, according to the developers, also be utilized to ship the Honda vehicles via rail to the entire southern half of the country.
When completed, Honda expects to ship about 145,000 cars a year through the facility.
