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US inbound containers drop 9.4% in OctoberUS inbound containers drop 9.4% in October

The decline in inbound US container volumes accelerated in October, falling by 9.4% across the 10 largest US box ports.

Gary Howard, Middle East correspondent

November 18, 2022

1 Min Read
Stacked containers in port of Los Angeles
Port of LA

Inbound volumes of 1.9m teu were the lowest since February 2021, according to analysis from the McCown Report. Highlighting a difference in fortune between coasts, East coast imports were up 9.5% on the 28-month average, while West coast ports were 22.7% down, giving an overall 6.8% deficit on the 28-month average.

West Coast ports led the decline with a 23.3% drop on-year in October inbound volumes, the biggest decline seen in over seven years, according to analysis from the McCown Report.

“Concern regarding possible labor unrest on the West Coast continued to play a role in additional volumes shifting eastward,” said John D McCown.

Despite the steep drop over the pandemic inflated inbound volumes of the pandemic, McCown said the figure represents a 2.4% compound annual growth rate over the past three years, suggesting a return to more normal growth.

The report forecast further large drops in volumes on-year for November and December as the market recovers from pandemic impacts.

The continued shift eastward of volumes comes despite congestion easing dramatically at the port of LA/Long Beach. For October, there was an average of 6.1 ships waiting for berth compared to 103.5 at the start of this year.

Some of the congestion has shifted eastward, with queues of 32 and 17 at Savannah and Houston, respectively, but McCown’s estimates puts the number of vessels awaiting a berth at 70 across the entire US, down from 99 a month ago.

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McCown again stressed what he called the “perilous impact of container rates on inflation”, with his estimate that the US economy has absorbed around $113.2bn in annual inflation based on the difference in container freight pricing between the fourth quarter 2019 and third quarter 2022.

About the Author

Gary Howard

Middle East correspondent

Gary Howard is the Middle East Correspondent for Seatrade Maritime News and has written for Seatrade Cruise, Seatrade Maritime Review and was News Editor at Lloyd’s List. Gary’s maritime career started after catching the shipping bug during a research assignment for the offshore industry. Working out of Seatrade's head office in the UK, he also produces and contributes to conference programmes for Seatrade events including CMA Shipping, Seatrade Maritime Logistics Middle East and Marintec. 

Gary’s favourite topics within the maritime industry are decarbonisation and wind-assisted propulsion; he particularly enjoys reporting from industry events.

Conferences & Webinars

Gary Howard regularly moderates at international maritime events. Below you’ll find a list of selected past conferences and webinars.

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