Port of Los Angeles box volumes slip in October

Despite an 8 percent decline in October container traffic, the Port of Los Angeles is still on track to be the first North American port to ever move 9 million TEUs in a calendar year, according to port officials.    Last month was the third-best October in Port of Los Angeles history in terms of container volumes, as the Southern California seaport handled nearly 749,000 TEUs for the month, according to data released by the port Nov. 14.
   However, the port said that the number of units moved was actually an 8.1 percent decrease compared to last year’s record-breaking October. During that month, and throughout the final quarter of 2016, the port handled higher-than-usual cargo volumes in the aftermath of Hanjin Shipping’s bankruptcy filing on the final day of that August.
   A substantial portion of the port’s October numbers came from the movement of 24,308 TEUs off and back onto the Maersk Evora containership at the port’s APM terminal. The amount is believed to be a world record for a single vessel port call, port Executive Director Gene Seroka said.
   October’s overall volumes of 748,762 TEUs consisted of 383,385 TEUs of loaded imports, a decrease of 8.1 percent to compared to October 2016; plus 144,209 TEUs of loaded exports, a drop of 13.3 percent; as well as a 4.2 percent drop in empty container traffic.
   Through the first 10 months of 2017, container volumes at the Port of Los Angeles are up 6.4 percent compared to last year’s 7.6 million TEUs. In calendar year 2016, the port moved 8.8 million TEUs, a record-setting amount and LA is currently on track to be the first-ever North American port to move 9 million TEUs in a calendar year during 2017, according to port officials.