WASHINGTON, June 9, 2015 – Import cargo volume at the
nation’s major retail container ports has returned to normal levels following
ratification of a new West Coast labor agreement, according to the monthly Global
Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and
Hackett Associates.
“Despite some lingering labor issues, the volume of cargo
and the rate of growth have both largely settled down,” NRF Vice President for
Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. “There are still congestion
issues to be dealt with but we’re hoping to see reasonably normal
back-to-school and holiday seasons this year now that the tensions of contract
negotiations are behind us.”
"June is going to be a mixed month for the West
Coast with volatility between the ports, but July and August are projected to
see growth across the board."
Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett
The Pacific Maritime Association and the International
Longshore and Warehouse Union both voted in May to ratify a new five-year
contract agreed to in February. The lack of a contract and operational issues
led to crisis-level congestion at West Coast ports after the previous agreement
expired last July.
Ports covered by Global Port Tracker handled 1.52 million
Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units in April, the latest month for which
after-the-fact numbers are available. That was down 12.4 percent from March,
when numbers were driven up by a surge of backlogged cargo after the labor
dispute ended, but up 6.1 percent from April 2014. One TEU is one 20-foot-long
cargo container or its equivalent.
May was estimated at 1.56 million TEU, up 5 percent from
2014. June is forecast at 1.52 million TEU, up 2.6 percent; July at 1.57
million TEU, up 4.9 percent; August also at 1.57 million TEU, up 3.3 percent;
September at 1.6 million TEU, up 0.6 percent, and October at 1.59 million TEU,
up 1.8 percent.
The first half of 2015 is forecast at 8.8 million TEU, an
increase of 5.4 percent over the same period last year.
Hackett Associates Founder Ben Hackett said a “stubbornly
high” inventory-to-sales ratio after last year’s rush to bring in adequate
stocks of merchandise will couple with other economic factors to affect cargo
volumes through the summer.
“The West Coast recovery remains sluggish and the East
Coast is not managing to hold on to the growth levels it has experienced over
the past few months,” Hackett said. “June is going to be a mixed month for the
West Coast with volatility between the ports, but July and August are projected
to see growth across the board. On the East Coast, we are projecting growth for
most ports.”
Global Port Tracker, which is produced for NRF by the
consulting firm Hackett Associates, covers the U.S. ports of Los Angeles/Long
Beach, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; New York/New Jersey,
Hampton Roads, Charleston, Savannah, Port Everglades and Miami on the East
Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast. The report is free to NRF retail members,
and subscription information is available at www.nrf.com/PortTracker or by
calling (202) 783-7971. Subscription information for non-members can be found
at www.globalporttracker.com.
NRF is the world’s largest retail trade association,
representing discount and department stores, home goods and specialty stores,
Main Street merchants, grocers, wholesalers, chain restaurants and Internet
retailers from the United States and more than 45 countries. Retail is the
nation’s largest private sector employer, supporting one in four U.S. jobs – 42
million working Americans. Contributing $2.6 trillion to annual GDP, retail is
a daily barometer for the nation’s economy. NRF’s This is Retail campaign
highlights the industry’s opportunities for life-long careers, how retailers
strengthen communities, and the critical role that retail plays in driving
innovation. NRF.com
Hackett Associates provides expert consulting, research
and advisory services to the international maritime industry, government
agencies and international institutions. www.hackettassociates.com
Source: NRF.com
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