Container throughput drops sharply! U.S. ports are no longer as busy as they used to be!

According to the latest monthly Global Port Tracking Report released by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates, cargo volumes at major U.S. container ports continue to decline as most holiday merchandise is already on retailers’ shelves or in warehouses.

Data shows that U.S. ports handled a total of 2 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent containers) in September, down 1.3% from September and 9.3% from the same period in 2021. Since May this year (2.4 million TEUs, a new high), the port's container import volume has declined month by month.

Jonathan Gold, NRF's vice president for supply chain and customs policy, said that since President Biden signed legislation on Friday to avoid a nationwide strike by railroad workers, the U.S. railroad strike crisis has been resolved and retailers should be able to easily cope with the next few weeks of the holiday season. Now, resolving labor-management negotiations at West Coast ports is the top priority to avoid supply chain problems from erupting again.

Ben Hackett, founder of Hackett Associates, pointed out that in May this year, the port's import volume hit a new high. But since then, the import volume has been declining. Due to the sufficient inventory of retailers and the slowdown in consumer demand, the port's import volume is currently at a low level.

NRF and Hackett Associates predict that major U.S. container ports will enter a period of slowdown after a very busy holiday season and a challenging year, with import volumes at ports set to fall to even lower levels over the next six months.

It is worth noting that the decline in imports at U.S. West Coast ports is due to the fact that many retailers shipped goods in advance this spring and shifted goods to East Coast and Gulf Coast ports due to concerns that ports would not be able to handle the goods in time, which also caused congestion at ports other than the West Coast.

Ports have not yet reported November numbers. However, according to NRF and Hackett Associates, U.S. ports will handle 1.85 million TEUs in November, down 12.3% from the same period last year and the lowest level since February 2021. In 2022, total U.S. port imports are expected to be 25.81 million TEUs, down 0.1% year-on-year.

Editor ✎ Nicole/

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