Northwest Seaport Alliance experiences double-digit box growth

International container volumes at the ports of Seattle and Tacoma increased 18 percent in May compared to last year.    Last month was the strongest May on record for total international container volumes at the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, including empties, at 255,817 TEUs, according to the Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA), which runs the marine cargo operating partnership between the two ports.
   As new ocean carrier alliance services entered the gateway, international container volumes increased by 18 percent compared to last year, the NWSA said.
   Full imports grew 10 percent to 115,960 TEUs compared to last year as retailers continued to rebuild inventory levels and a favorable market outlook fueled import demand. Despite the strong U.S. dollar, full exports were up 8 percent to 78,086 TEUs.
   Empty exports also grew 72 percent as ocean carriers continued to reposition empties to Asia in preparation for peak season.
   The National Retail Federation recently projected in its June-October forecast that imports are expected to continue their strong growth trend.
   Year-to-date, full import volumes surged 11 percent to 578,387 TEUs, according to figures, while full export volumes grew 5 percent to 402,829 TEUs. Total international containers, including empties, increased 13 percent year-to-date to 1.22 million TEUs, the highest since 2006, the NWSA said.
   Data shows that total container volumes for the gateway grew 12 percent over the same month last year, and year-to-date volumes increased 8 percent.
   Regarding other cargo on a year-to-date basis from the corresponding 2016 period:
     • Log volumes increased 93.9 percent to 129,927 metric tons, driven by consistent demand from China;
     • Breakbulk volumes decreased 7 percent to 69,901 metric tons, due to soft market conditions;
     • And autos tumbled 20 percent to 59,891 units, due in part to weakening U.S. demand.