LA up, Long Beach down in September

   Cargo volume at the two Southern California ports was mixed in September, with Los Angeles throughput rising 5.6 percent and Long Beach volume down 2.9 percent year-on-year.
   Los Angeles’ volume hit 744,923 TEUs during the month, the highest total since August 2010. Imports rose 3.4 percent, to 385,250 TEUs. Exports fell 2.6 percent to 172,432 TEUs. Empties, meanwhile, climbed 20 percent to 187,240 TEUs.
   At Long Beach, total volume fell to 512,020 TEUs, after volume had grown two of the last three months year-on-year. Imports rose 0.7 percent to 265,102 TEUs. Exports declined 5.8 percent to 114,902 TEUs. Empties fell 9.1 percent to 132,016 TEUs.
   Year-to-date, Long Beach volume is down 4.4 percent to 4.4 million TEUs, including a 4 percent drop in imports and a 1.3 percent drop in exports.
   The port said its volume drops are due to “the continuing weakness in the economy, and the cutbacks in ship calls by several niche vessel operators at the end of 2011 and early 2012.”
   Los Angeles volume is up 5.2 percent in 2012. – Eric Johnson