Port of Long Beach container volume down 0.1% in August 2022

Cargo volume in August at the Port of Long Beach fell just short of another record month as a slowdown in consumer spending in the U.S. continued, according to the company's release.
 
Dockworkers and terminal operators moved 806,940 twenty-foot-equivalent units of container cargo last month, down just 764 TEUs – 0.1% – from August 2021, which was the busiest August ever. Imports were down 5.6% to 384,530 TEUs and exports increased 1.6% to 121,408 TEUs. Empty containers moved through the Port increased 7.2% to 301,001 TEUs.
 
Falling gas prices alleviated worries about inflation, but consumer spending remained flat in August.
 
The Port delayed the start of a “Container Dwell Fee” that would charge ocean carriers for containers that remain too long on the docks. Still, the San Pedro Bay ports – Long Beach and Los Angeles combined – have seen a 50% decline in aging cargo on the docks since the program was announced on Oct. 25.
 
The Port of Long Beach has broken monthly cargo records in six out of the last eight months. The Port has moved 6,600,560 TEUs during the first eight months of 2022, up 4% from the same period last year.
 
The Port of Long Beach is one of the world’s premier seaports, a gateway for trans-Pacific trade and a trailblazer in goods movement and environmental stewardship. As the second-busiest container seaport in the United States, the Port handles trade valued at more than $200 billion annually and supports 2.6 million trade-related jobs across the nation, including 575,000 in Southern California.