Business and Finance

Cargo Numbers: May – June 2014

At the Port of Long Beach cargo container numbers edged up 2.7 percent in May reaching nearly 600000 container units. In June the port handled 610516 TEUs overall. Both were the busiest months respectively since 2007.

Terminals handled 599509 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) overall in May including 312439 TEUs of imports which is a 2.3 percent increase compared to May 2013. Exports were flat with a slight decline of 0.3 percent to 146702 TEUs.

While May was the second consecutive month of increasing volume Long Beach has seen an increase of just 1.3 percent for the first five months of 2014 compared to the same period last year.

In June cargo container volume rose eight percent at the Port of Long Beach compared to the same month last year. June was the third consecutive month with a year-over-year increase in container volume. The port has seen an increase of 2.5 percent for the first six months of 2014 compared to the same time last year.

The Georgia Port Authority (GPA) Executive Director Curtis Foltz reported that GPA’s May performance was the strongest month ever recorded in the 69-year history for the movement of containers.

TEUs at Savannah’s container terminal rose by 11.1 percent or 28916 TEUs compared to May 2013 for a total of 290436 TEUs in the month just ended. Total tonnage for May was up 10.5 percent or 251000 tons to reach 2.63 million tons also a new GPA record for monthly volume.

In June overall container volumes at the Port of Los Angeles increased by 13.89 percent compared to June 2013. Total cargo for June was 736438 TEUs the largest volume in monthly containers since September 2012.

Container imports rose 16.55 percent from 328324 TEUs in June 2013 to 382666 TEUs in June 2014. Exports rose 8.51 percent from 148203 TEUs in June 2013 to 160823 TEUs in June 2014.

For the first six months of calendar year 2014 overall volumes (4052227 TEUs) have increased 9.2 percent compared to the same period in 2013.

The South Carolina Ports Authority saw strong export growth throughout FY2014 with a 6.54 percent fiscal year to date increase in export TEUs handled year over year. In total fiscal year to date the SCPA reported an increase of 7.03 percent over the same period last year in TEU volume with 1535724 TEUs handled.