Empties boost increase as consumer spending slows

The Port of Long Beach had its busiest July on record despite a cooldown in consumer spending.

Dockworkers and terminal operators moved 785,843 twenty-foot equivalent units in July, a slim 0.13% increase from the previous record set in July 2021. Imports declined 1.8% to 376,175 TEUs, while exports were down 0.5% to 109,411 TEUs. Empty containers moved through the Port were up 2.8% to 300,257 TEUs.

“We are continuing to seek solutions to improve efficiency as a record-breaking number of containers moves through the Port,” said Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero. “We hope to relieve some of the stress points by continuing to support a transition of the entire supply chain to 24/7 operations and ensuring our industry partners can track containers with our new Supply Chain Information Highway data solution.”

“Our waterfront workforce continues to ensure trade moves through the Port at a record-setting pace,” said Long Beach Harbor Commission President Sharon L. Weissman. “We continue to strengthen our partnerships with labor and industry to ensure our spot as a leader in trans-Pacific trade.”

The economy is not necessarily in a recession, but weaker domestic demand confirms it is rapidly downshifting amid stubbornly high inflation and aggressive tightening by the Federal Reserve. Consumer spending rose a modest 1% nationally, attributed to an increase in spending on services that offset a decline in purchasing goods.

With the July result, the Port of Long Beach has broken monthly records in six out of the last seven months. The Port has moved 5,793,621 TEUs during the first seven months of 2022, up 4.6% from the same period last year.

For complete cargo numbers, visit polb.com/statistics.