American ports have been handling record volumes of cargo as the demand for consumer goods remains high.
The Port of Los Angeles processed the equivalent of 958,674 20-ft units (TEUs) during March, completing its best ever first quarter and tracking 3.5 per cent above the record it set last year. The congestion at American ports has been an issue of concern around the world for the past few months with the backlog causing delays and problems in international supply chains.
But Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, said the port was working hard to reduce the number of container ships waiting for their cargo to be processed.
He said: “With improved fluidity on our docks and fewer vessels waiting to enter the port, our terminals are processing cargo at record levels. Yet we’re not taking anything for granted. We’re using our Port Optimizer data to find developing issues and adjust to market demands.”
March was the third best ever month in the entire 115-year history of LA Port with May 2021 taking the all-time record with more than a million TEUs. And South Carolina Ports (SC Ports) also enjoyed a successful month in March, reporting an all-time container record.
Jim Newsome, CEO of SC Ports, said: “As we continue to handle record volumes on our terminals, SC Ports is working alongside our maritime community and logistics partners to navigate the many challenges felt across the entire supply chain. We are responding to customers’ needs as we make progress on reducing the backlog.”
To cope with the increased demand, the port had taken on more staff, including hiring more than 150 people in operations plus investing more than $2 billion into improving the infrastructure of the port itself.
High consumer demand has fuelled shipping crisis
The crowded shipyards are thought to be the result of consumers buying more goods from abroad than before the pandemic. In August 2021, imports of toys, games and sporting goods were up 74 per cent compared to February 2020, according to the Capital Economics group.
In particular, consumers are buying more items from China where products typically cost less than American goods but need to be brought to the United States on container ships. Staff absences due to the Covid-19 pandemic have made it challenging for ports to deal with this increase in imported goods from Asia.
The return of lockdowns in China combined with complications caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine means that there continues to be disruptions to the global supply chain meaning many customers are waiting longer for their goods than usual.
Experts predict that there will continue to be pressures on the international supply chain for the rest of this year, although there have been improvements in how quickly ports in the United States are dealing with large numbers of cargo ships.
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