April Container Volume Should Rise 9%

April 11, 2011  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in sourcing/importing on April 12, 2011

Import cargo volume at major U.S. container ports should rise 9 percent in April over the same month last year, the National Retail Federation announced Monday.

That's according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report, compiled for NRF by National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

"These numbers are an indication that the economy is recovering and retailers are expecting continued increases in sales through the summer and beyond," said NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold. "There are challenges ahead from rising prices for gasoline and other essentials, but inventories are under control and retailers are optimistic."

U.S. ports followed by Global Port Tracker handled 1.1 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units in February, traditionally the slowest month of the year and the latest for which actual numbers are available. That was down 8 percent from January but up 10 percent from February 2010. It was the 15th month in a row to show a year-over-year improvement after December 2009 broke a 28-month streak of year-over-year declines.

March was estimated at 1.2 million TEU, an increase of 11 percent over March 2010. April is forecast at 1.24 million TEU, up 9 percent from a year ago; May at 1.32 million TEU, up 4 percent; June at 1.38 million TEU, up 5 percent; July at 1.45 million TEU, up 5 percent; and August at 1.54 million TEU, up 8 percent.

The first half of 2011 is forecast at 7.4 million TEU, up 8 percent from the first half of 2010. For the full year, 2010 totaled 14.7 million TEU, a 16 percent increase over 2009. Last year's percentages were high because 2009€™s 12.7 million TEU was the lowest level seen since 2003.

"The economy is slowly on the mend with many of the key short-term indicators providing positive directions," Hackett Associates founder Ben Hackett said. "Consumers are buoyed by falling unemployment and are somewhat freer with their money."

Global Port Tracker, which is produced for NRF by the consulting firm Hackett Associates, covers the U.S. ports of Long Angeles/Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; New York/New Jersey, Hampton Roads, Charleston and Savannah on the East Coast; and Houston on the Gulf Coast.