PORT HOUSTON RECORDS NEW LOADED EXPORTS RECORD
Port Houston celebrated a major milestone in October, reporting the highest volume of loaded exports in its history. Compared to the same period last year, loaded exports increased by an impressive 6%. Year-to-date export figures also show a significant growth of 10%, with a total of 1,151,638 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) exported through October 2023. The majority of these exports consist of resins and chemicals, solidifying Port Houston’s position as the leading resins port in the nation and home to North America’s largest petrochemical cluster.
PORT OF LOS ANGELES REPORTS CARGO GROWTH FOR THE THIRD STRAIGHT MONTH
The Port of Los Angeles continues to see positive growth as it reports an increase in cargo volume for the third consecutive month as West Coast ports work to regain market share. The port October processed a total of 725,775 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) in October, marking a 7% improvement compared to the same month last year. Loaded imports in October 2023 reached 372,455 TEUs, showing a significant increase of 11% compared to the previous year. Loaded exports surged 35% over 2022, coming in at 121,277 TEUs for the month. Empty containers experienced a slight decline, totaling 232,043 TEUs, down by 8% compared to last year.
SOFT US IMPORT VOLUMES CRIMPING CONTAINER AVAILABILITY FOR AGRICULTURAL EXPORTS A shortage of containers in the nation’s interior amid a double-digit percentage drop in containerized imports this year is beginning to compromise the ability of US agricultural exporters to ship their commodities to markets in Asia and Europe now that the harvest season is in full swing. Agricultural interests blame the equipment shortage on the almost 17% decline in US imports from Asia through the first 10 months of the year. Containerized imports that move inland to population centers such as Chicago, Dallas, and Kansas City provide the boxes that are unloaded and repositioned to export facilities.
NEW LOGISTICS CENTER UNDER CONSTRUCTION TO TAP INTO PORT OF SAVANNAH’S GROWTH Developers have broken ground on a 10 million-square-foot logistics center near the Port of Savannah that will offer cross-dock and CSX rail services to support the port’s growing customer base, with a plastic and paper exporter slipping into the first phase. The Central Point Logistics Center at Savannah — a 467-acre industrial space to be developed by Capital Development Partners — will offer 10,080 TEUs of container space for customers of the port to store their cargo for import or export distribution. The mostly speculative project, located seven miles from the port’s Garden City Terminal (GCT), will be completed in four.
ESTES COMMITS TO MORE TECHNOLOGY SPENDING AFTER OCTOBER CYBERATTACK
After suffering a cyberattack last month, US less-than-truckload (LTL) carrier Estes Express Lines will double down on its investment in technology. Customers that left or shifted some freight temporarily are believed to have moved much of it back to Estes and the company continued to move significant amounts of freight.
