Container imports forecast to fall beneath final yr’s ranges for the rest of 2022
Imports on the nation’s main container ports are anticipated to fall beneath final yr’s ranges for the rest of 2022, on account of efforts by the Federal Reserve to chill demand and tamp down inflation by setting larger rates of interest, in line with the month-to-month International Port Tracker report launched immediately by the Nationwide Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates.
The cool forecast comes as firms nationwide harbor lingering concern about ongoing labor negotiations between freight railroads and their union and between the Worldwide Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Affiliation, which manages the west coast container ports. To date, each the railroad staff and the dockworkers stay on the job, however disruptions may strike shortly if talks falter, the report stated.
“Shoppers are nonetheless shopping for, however the cargo surge we noticed throughout the previous two years seems to be slowing down,” NRF Vice President for Provide Chain and Customs Coverage Jonathan Gold stated in a launch. “Cargo volumes are solidly above pre-pandemic ranges, however the fee of progress has slowed and even slid into unfavourable numbers in contrast with unusually excessive volumes final yr. The important thing now’s coping with ongoing provide chain points round the globe and with labor negotiations at West Coast ports and freight railroads. Easy operations on the ports and on the rails is essential as we enter the busy vacation season.”
By the numbers, U.S. ports coated by International Port Tracker dealt with 2.18 million twenty-foot equal models (TEUs) in July, the most recent month for which remaining numbers can be found. That was down 3.1% from June and down 0.4% from July 2021, marking solely the third year-over-year decline in two years and the primary since December 2021.
Ports haven’t but reported August’s numbers, however International Port Tracker projected the month at 2.17 million TEU, which might be down 4.3% yr over yr. The report gives knowledge on the U.S. ports of Los Angeles/Lengthy Seashore, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; New York/New Jersey, Port of Virginia, Charleston, Savannah, Port Everglades, Miami and Jacksonville on the East Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast.
“The variety of vessels ready to dock on the West Coast has been lowered to near-normal,” Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett stated in a launch. “However with the swap of some cargo to the East Coast, congestion and stress on the ports has shifted to the East Coast. The inland provide chain, notably rail, continues to face difficulties which have resulted within the delay of containers leaving ports, inflicting terminal congestion that impacts the flexibility of carriers to discharge their cargo.”
