LOS ANGELES: Containerized imports at the Port of Los Angeles rose 7.6 percent in November compared to the same month last year, another indication that West Coast ports have put the labor problems of 2014-15 behind them and are positioned for growth.
Wednesday’s numbers posted by the largest U.S. port followed an announcement last week by Long Beach, the second-largest U.S. container port, that imports in November were up 4.3 percent from November 2014.
The West Coast’s market share of U.S. containerized imports in November increased to 53.32 percent from 51.22 percent in October, and was close to the 53.89 percent market share they had in November 2014, according to PIERS, a sister product of JOC.com within IHS.
West Coast ports have been slowly regaining market share they had lost earlier this year to East and Gulf Coast ports due to port congestion, work slowdowns and employer retaliation associated with contract negotiations between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association.
The four-month period from November 2014 through February 2015 was disastrous for West Coast ports and especially Los Angeles-Long Beach. At a meeting Tuesday evening of the Harbor Transportation Club of Southern California, Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, said the ports during the work slowdowns lost 30 vessel calls, or 400,000 twenty-foot-equivalent units. That was in addition to the pre-planned diversions that beneficial cargo owners implemented last year in anticipation of labor problems with the July 1 expiration of the coastwide contract, he told the HTC.
Los Angeles in November handled 358,423 loaded import TEUs, which was up from 333,152 in November 2014 and was the sixth straight month of import volumes above 350,000 TEUs. Long Beach in November handled 306,654 loaded inbound containers. Except for June, when imports slipped slightly, Long Beach has handled more than 300,000 import TEUs every month this year since March.
Jon Slangerup, chief executive of the Port of Long Beach, said that after a “horrible” first quarter, when the port saw a 20 percent plunge in container volume, Long Beach has recorded strong growth the rest of the year and the lost market share is over. “We regained it all,” he told the HTC meeting. The key to continued growth will be to build upon the trust that BCOs have been demonstrating toward the Southern California ports by maintaining a reliable, congestion-free gateway, Slangerup said.
Exports through Los Angeles in November declined 5.7 percent compared to November 2014. Most ports are experiencing a drop in exports due to the strong dollar, which makes U.S. products more costly overseas, and underperforming economies among major trading partners. JOC economist Mario Moreno projects that total U.S. containerized exports in 2015 will decline 2.5 percent, but will rebound in 2016, with 4 percent growth anticipated.
Total containers moving through Los Angeles in November, including empties being repositioned primarily to Asia, increased 7 percent. The first two months of 2015 were a significant drag on the port, however, and Seroka said Los Angeles will end the year down 1.9 percent from 2014.
