WASHINGTON: Shipping through the ports of Seattle and Tacoma surged nearly 21 percent compared with February last year. Volumes climbed largely because this time last year, a labor dispute at West Coast ports slowed cargo loading for several months through much of February 2015.
With trade again freely flowing through both Puget Sound ports, loaded 20-foot equivalent containers, also called TEUs, entering and leaving the ports each grew 31 percent in January and February this year compared with the same time a year ago. Longshore workers unloaded 215,690 full containers of imported goods. Together the ports exported 141,890 full containers in the same time frame.
Items too large to be shipped in containers, called breakbulk cargo, fell by 40 percent compared with last year, according to a news release by the Northwest Seaport Alliance. The ports of Tacoma and Seattle have released joint cargo statistics since this time last year, as the two bodies contemplated an alliance to compete with other West Coast ports. The Northwest Seaport Alliance was finalized last summer.
