The Port of Long Beach has been experience tremendous increases in cargo volumes. In 2017, the port had an overall increase of 11% in cargo volumes for the year, and the momentum has remained in the start of 2018 with two record-breaking months in a row. In February, cargo volumes at the port increased 30%. At least a portion of the bump can be attributed to advance activity before the Lunar New Year, when Asian carriers will break for the holiday. Still, the extreme increases show strong momentum at the port largely due to a growing economy, according to officials.

“The shipping increase prior to the Lunar New Year holiday is common, and this one was particularly busy for the Port of Long Beach,” Lee Peterson of the Port of Long Beach tells GlobeSt.com, adding that the economy is also a factor in the recent increases. “The record-breaking cargo volume for the first two months is due to the fact that the economy is accelerating and we are seeing retailers and consumer feeding the demand.”

Unsurprisingly, import activity drove the increased volumes, up 37% for the month with 342,247 TEUs. Exports, however, also saw increase for the month, up 9.3% with 130,916 outbound containers. These are significant increases, and likely part of a larger trend of ocean carriers shipping steady flows of cargo. Even for the port, however, these number exceed expectations. “We have been expecting to see higher rates of cargo in what had been the “non-peak season” months like January and February, so this is not totally unexpected,” says Peterson. “It's great to see the record levels on top of that.”

Because the Lunar New Year helped to drive activity up in February, it is likely that the impacts from the holiday will produce a slower March. However, the strong economy fueling activity this year will likely mean increases over March 2017 cargo volumes. “March's volumes will not be up to the January and February level, but it is expected to be busier than March 2017, which will be good news for the first quarter of 2018 at the Port of Long Beach,” explains Peterson. Due to the effect of the Lunar New Year, it can't be as busy as February and January, but it looks like it will be busy.”

Instant Insights /

Long Beach Port Cargo Volumes Surge 30%

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