Container volume fell 0.4% year-on-year in August! US imports are heading for a two-year low!

It is learned that according to the latest monthly global port tracking report released by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates, US container imports are heading for a two-year low.

The report showed that U.S. ports handled a total of 2.26 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent containers) in August, up 3.5% from July but down 0.4% from the same period in 2021, the fourth year-on-year decline in two years and the second decline since December 2021.

Jonathan Gold, NRF's vice president for supply chain and customs policy, said that American consumers are still buying, but the purchase volume has slowed significantly compared with the past two years. The growth rate of import cargo volume has slowed down this year compared with last year, and even slipped into negative numbers.

Import volumes at major U.S. container ports are expected to fall to their lowest level in two years by the end of 2022, according to forecasts from NRF and Hackett Associates.

Ben Hackett, founder of Hackett Associates, said that the growth of US imports has lost momentum, especially cargoes from Asia, which have decreased significantly. Recent carrier capacity cuts reflect the setbacks suffered by retailers with sufficient inventory, even as consumers continue to spend. In addition, the closure of factories during China's National Day in October and the Chinese government's continued "zero epidemic" policy have also affected productivity, which has led to a decline in Pacific cargo volumes.

It is understood that ports have not yet reported September figures, but the Global Port Tracker predicts that US ports will handle 2.07 million TEUs in September, a year-on-year decrease of 3%; in the second half of the year, US ports will handle 12.5 million TEUs, a year-on-year decrease of 4%; for the full year, it will reach 26 million TEUs, an increase of 0.7% over last year.

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