WASHINGTON: Total container volumes at U.S Southeast ports took it on the chin last month, due in large part to less-than-favorable comparisons to record-setting May last year and a soft economy. Overall twenty-foot equivalent unit container traffic was down at each of the the top three Southeast ports in May — something several port authorities said they expected given the circumstances.
Laden container imports were down 5 percent year-over-year in May at Georgia’s port of Savannah at 141,051 TEUs, up just 1.5 percent at the Port of Charleston at 77,225 TEUs and down 2.3 percent at the Port of Virginia at 92,439 TEUs. Laden exports were up less than 1 percent at Savannah at 111,687 TEUs, up just 1.3 percent at Charleston at 66,552 TEUs and down 12 percent at Virginia at 80,729 TEUs.
Total container volume, meanwhile, was down for each of the ports: down 7.3 percent year-over-year at Savannah at 313,485 TEUs, down 2.2 percent at Charleston at 177,865 TEUs and down 4.8 percent at 219,398 TEUs.
It’s reflective of what has been reported at other East Coast ports, according to data from Piers, a sister product of JOC.com within IHS. May figures at East Coast ports, in general, have suffered from less-than-favorable comparisons to last May and the general market economy. Total East Coast container traffic was down 1.96 percent year-over-year in May. West Coast ports traffic, by comparison, increased 2.01 percent. May 2015 was for several — including Savannah, Charleston and Virginia — a record-setting month, fueled in part by the diversion of cargo from West Coast ports embroiled in a protracted labor dispute.
“Volume for May was not as high when compared with last year, but that was anticipated,” John Reinhart, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, said in a statement. “We are still tracking for a very modest gain for the fiscal year and our volume expectations for the balance of the calendar year are realistic.”
Jim Newsome, South Carolina Ports Authority president and CEO, agreed that the current fiscal and calendar year face tough comparisons to the prior year. “Our volumes this fiscal year have flattened when compared to FY2015, and although we expect growth to continue to keep pace above the U.S. port market average, the plan for FY2017 reflects modest increases in pier container volumes,” Newsome said in a statement.
