Economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to cause a slowdown of cargo movement at the Port of Long Beach in April, port officials said Tuesday.
Dockworkers and terminal operators moved 519,730 cargo units in April, down 17.3% from the same month last year, when the port had its busiest April on record.
Imports slid 20.2% to 253,540 cargo units, while exports declined 17.2% to 102,502 cargo units compared to April last year. Empty containers headed overseas decreased 12.2% to 163,688 cargo units.
The port moved more than 2.2 million cargo units during the first four months of 2020, which is 9.5% down from the same period in 2019.
“We look forward to a recovery stage and rebounding cargo shipments as the nation contemplates relaxing shelter-in-place orders, people return to work and consumer demand rises. However it will not be in the short-term,” said Mario Cordero, the executive director of the Port of Long Beach.
“In the meantime, we continue to collaborate with importers, exporters, terminal operators and labor to develop a recovery plan while ensuring the safe and reliable delivery of goods moving through the Port of Long Beach,” he said.
Decreased consumer demand during stay-at-home health orders prompted by COVID-19 drove down imports, officials said. Exports were hampered by a shift of carrier services.
Manufacturing in China is rebounding from the COVID-19 pandemic, but demand in the United States is below normal due to the ongoing crisis.
“Continuing to engage with our partners, stakeholders and the community is of the utmost importance at this time,” Long Beach Harbor Commission President Bonnie Lowenthal said. “We are striving to live up to our duty to keep goods moving through the supply chain during this crisis.”
The San Pedro Bay port complex, which includes the Port of Los Angeles, is expected to have 48 canceled vessel voyages April 1 through June 30, port officials said, with 16 of them scheduled for the Port of Long Beach. The two ports reported 10 so-called “blank sailings” during the same period in 2019.
The figures come on the heels of 61 canceled sailings for the San Pedro Bay ports during the first quarter of 2020 caused by a manufacturing slowdown during the height of the COVID-19 crisis in China, nearly double the 31 blank sailings a year earlier, port officials said.
For detailed cargo numbers, visit polb.com/statistics.