Vessel traffic slightly up in Southern California

Vessel traffic slightly up in Southern California    Vessel counts in the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are up slightly in the first two months of 2006, the Marine Exchange of Southern California said Tuesday.
   Last year, vessel calls at the two ports ' together the busiest port complex in the nation ' were down despite a double digit growth in container throughput, mostly due to an influx of post-Panamax vessels capable of carrying 8,000-plus TEUs.
   'We are slightly ahead on the overall total vessel counts for this year as compared to last year, with a 'ramping up' in vessel arrivals beginning in February,' said Marine Exchange Executive Director Manny Aschemeyer. 'We see a strong count for vessel arrivals during the first week of March — which seems to indicate that shippers and consignees have regained their confidence in using LA/LB Harbor for moving their goods to and fro.'