A surge of cargo volume spurred by the upcoming holidays resulted in a near-record of container movement at the Port of Los Angeles in August, which experienced a 16% increase over the same period in 2023, officials announced Wednesday.
Port workers handled a total of 960,597 twenty-foot equivalent units in August. Loaded imports came in at 509,363 TEUs, an 18% increase compared to the same month last year, and loaded exports were at 121,744 TEUs, a 3% decrease over 2023. The port also processed 329,491 empty containers, a 22% jump compared to 2023.
“The American consumer continues to spend and that’s helping to power our economy,” Gene Seroka, executive director of the port, said during an online media briefing. “Some of the cargo arriving now is replenishing inventories even beyond the year-end holiday season. Combined with a steady flow of manufacturing parts and components, we should continue to see elevated volume in the near term.”
Seroka added that “It’s been a very busy summer on our docks and I’m thankful to all of our dedicated waterfront workers and terminal operators for their commitment to handling this level of volume safely and efficiently through America’s Port.”
In the eight months of 2024, the port moved 6,631,688 TEUs, representing a 17% increase over the same period last year.
George Goldman, president and CEO of the North America division of CMA CGM, a global shipping group, joined Seroka to discuss factors behind the recent surge of cargo volume, as well as what U.S. ports can expect in the coming months.
Looking ahead to the fourth quarter, Goldman said his company sees shipping and trading to be “strong.”
“The commodities that the consumer in North America has purchased at the beginning of the pandemic — some of those are now coming up for renewal,” Goldman said. “We see it happening right now with the strength of the consumer market and retail sales.
“We see the GDP (gross domestic product) numbers are good,” he added.