US box imports to slow in 2008
The heads of two shipping majors are forecasting a slow down in container traffic carrying imported cargo into the United States this year although strong growth is expected elsewhere worldwide.
Maersk Line and Maersk Logistics CEO Eivind Kolding and Hapag-Lloyd AG board member Adolf Adrion said a slow down in US trade was unlikely to lead to a 'full-blown recession'.
“Our prediction is that at best we will see slow growth (of container shipments) to the US, of only a few percentage points, probably,” said Kolding.
Speaking about global trade along leading container routes, Kolding pointed out that “everything (container demand) outside of the US is stronger.”
He added: “Transpacific container trade routes, mostly ferrying manufactured goods from Asia to the US, were among the world's busiest in 2006, second only to intra-Asian trade.”
According to Hapag-Lloyd's Adolf Adrion, from a 'trade point of view', it was unlikely the US economy would tip into a 'full-blown' recession.
Adrion instead preferred to characterize it as a lull for a limited time, said a report. “I think it will be a trough, a small trough,” he said.
According to the Drewry Shipping Consultants, container trade between 1982 and 2005 grew three and a half times as fast as world gross domestic product and 40% faster than international trade.
The consulting firm also calculated that global container trade has seen five consecutive years of double-digit growth.
However, according to a port traffic tracker report from the National Retail Federation and Global Insight, November saw container traffic at major US ports fall from last year's levels for the fourth month in a row.
The reports blamed a weakening US economy.
The tracker report includes throughput at the key ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach, Houston, Savannah, Charleston, Oakland, Tacoma, Seattle, New York/New Jersey and Hampton Roads.
These ports in total handled 1.46 million TEUs in October which was a 1.3% drop from the previous month's levels and a 3.5% dip from the 1.51 million TEUs handled in October last year.
November levels also saw a 3.5% dip year-on-year as the falling traffic worsens from the 1.4% dip year-on-year in August and a subsequent 1.9% dip year-on-year in September.
Maersk Line and Maersk Logistics CEO Eivind Kolding and Hapag-Lloyd AG board member Adolf Adrion said a slow down in US trade was unlikely to lead to a 'full-blown recession'.
“Our prediction is that at best we will see slow growth (of container shipments) to the US, of only a few percentage points, probably,” said Kolding.
Speaking about global trade along leading container routes, Kolding pointed out that “everything (container demand) outside of the US is stronger.”
He added: “Transpacific container trade routes, mostly ferrying manufactured goods from Asia to the US, were among the world's busiest in 2006, second only to intra-Asian trade.”
According to Hapag-Lloyd's Adolf Adrion, from a 'trade point of view', it was unlikely the US economy would tip into a 'full-blown' recession.
Adrion instead preferred to characterize it as a lull for a limited time, said a report. “I think it will be a trough, a small trough,” he said.
According to the Drewry Shipping Consultants, container trade between 1982 and 2005 grew three and a half times as fast as world gross domestic product and 40% faster than international trade.
The consulting firm also calculated that global container trade has seen five consecutive years of double-digit growth.
However, according to a port traffic tracker report from the National Retail Federation and Global Insight, November saw container traffic at major US ports fall from last year's levels for the fourth month in a row.
The reports blamed a weakening US economy.
The tracker report includes throughput at the key ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach, Houston, Savannah, Charleston, Oakland, Tacoma, Seattle, New York/New Jersey and Hampton Roads.
These ports in total handled 1.46 million TEUs in October which was a 1.3% drop from the previous month's levels and a 3.5% dip from the 1.51 million TEUs handled in October last year.
November levels also saw a 3.5% dip year-on-year as the falling traffic worsens from the 1.4% dip year-on-year in August and a subsequent 1.9% dip year-on-year in September.