Strong December at Long Beach Brings Port Volume Almost Equal to 2011

January 17, 2013 by Mike Feazel|Ports

Cargo container volume grew 18.9 percent in December at the Port of Long Beach, compared to a year ago, the port said. Port terminals handled a total of 560,120 twenty-foot equivalent container units (TEUs) overall. The port said December 2012 capped a surge that made up for the year's lackluster start, with 2012 volume ending up in a virtual tie with 2011. The container growth came as more ocean carriers added services to Long Beach in recent months, including CMA CGM and Mediterranean Shipping Co. Import container traffic rose to 295,579 TEUs, up from 248,603 in December 2011. Exports rose 4.9 percent to 135,561 TEUs for the month. Empty containers slowed 2.4 percent to 128,980 TEUs. For the full year, the Port moved a total of 6.05 million TEUs, down 0.3 percent from 2011. Imports were up 1.2 percent to 3.06 million TEUs. Exports were up 2.2 percent to 1.54 million TEUs. And empties were down 5.6 percent to 1.44 million TEUs.