Despite headwinds, Port of Los Angeles nears 10M TEUs

Tariffs, trade intrigue, economic uncertainty – even a ship fire – won’t keep the Port of Los Angeles from turning in one of its best years ever in 2025.

The leading U.S. import gateway processed 782,249 twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) in November – down 12% from year-ago levels elevated by frontloading – pushing total traffic to 9,447,731 TEUs, 1% ahead 2024 with one month still to be counted.

“Even with all the trade uncertainty, we’ll finish 2025 north of 10 million TEUs, putting this year firmly in our top three of all time,” Port Executive Director Gene Seroka said in a media briefing. “All that cargo moved without congestion and not a single ship backed up.

He credited resilient consumer spending, as well as the work of longshore labor, truckers, terminal operators, rail partners and other stakeholders for the banner year, adding 200,000 importers and exporters do business with the port annually.

Seroka also said a recent fire aboard the container ship ONE Henry Hudson had no measurable effect on port operations. No injuries were reported in the Nov. 21 blaze, and crews continue to salvage the ship’s cargo.

November loaded imports came in at 406,421 TEUs, 11% lower y/y. Exports numbered 113,706 TEUs, off 8%, while empties, an indicator of future import volume, fell 13% to 262,122 units.

Find more articles by Stuart Chirls here.

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