US Imports at major container ports are expected to stay elevated this month, despite the labour strike that halted operations at East and Gulf Coast ports for three days, reports gCaptain, Ventura, California.
According to the latest Global Port Tracker report from the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates, the strike is not anticipated to impact the upcoming holiday shopping season.
The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) initiated the strike on October 1 after their previous 6-year Master Contract with the US Maritime Alliance expired. However, the strike lasted only three days, ending after both parties reached a tentative agreement on a short-term contract extension until January 15.
'It was a huge relief for retailers, their customers and the nation's economy that the strike was short lived,' said Jonathan Gold, NRF vice president for supply chain and customs policy.
'It will take the affected ports a couple of weeks to recover, but we can rest assured that all ports across the country will be working hard to meet demand, and no impact on the holiday shopping season is expected.'
Despite the brief disruption, ports are expected to handle significant cargo volumes in the coming months.
US ports covered by the Global Port Tracker handled 2.34 million TEU in August, marking a 19.3 per cent increase year over year and the highest volume since May 2022.
Final numbers from September are projected at 2.29 million TEU, up 12.9 per cent year over year, while October is forecast at 2.12 million TEU, a 3.1 per cent increase.
Looking ahead, November and December are forecast to see modest year-over-year increases, potentially bringing the 2024 total to 24.9 million TEU, a 12.1 per cent rise from 2023. These projections align with the NRF's forecast of 2.5 per cent to 3.5 per cent growth in core retail sales for 2024.
Ben Hackett, Founder of Hackett Associates, noted that the recent surge in imports has been largely due to contingency planning: 'The surge in imports over the past few months has clearly been the result of contingency imports by wholesalers, retailers and industrial companies in anticipation of the East and Gulf Coast port strike rather than a sudden increase in demand.'
SeaNews Turkey
According to the latest Global Port Tracker report from the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates, the strike is not anticipated to impact the upcoming holiday shopping season.
The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) initiated the strike on October 1 after their previous 6-year Master Contract with the US Maritime Alliance expired. However, the strike lasted only three days, ending after both parties reached a tentative agreement on a short-term contract extension until January 15.
'It was a huge relief for retailers, their customers and the nation's economy that the strike was short lived,' said Jonathan Gold, NRF vice president for supply chain and customs policy.
'It will take the affected ports a couple of weeks to recover, but we can rest assured that all ports across the country will be working hard to meet demand, and no impact on the holiday shopping season is expected.'
Despite the brief disruption, ports are expected to handle significant cargo volumes in the coming months.
US ports covered by the Global Port Tracker handled 2.34 million TEU in August, marking a 19.3 per cent increase year over year and the highest volume since May 2022.
Final numbers from September are projected at 2.29 million TEU, up 12.9 per cent year over year, while October is forecast at 2.12 million TEU, a 3.1 per cent increase.
Looking ahead, November and December are forecast to see modest year-over-year increases, potentially bringing the 2024 total to 24.9 million TEU, a 12.1 per cent rise from 2023. These projections align with the NRF's forecast of 2.5 per cent to 3.5 per cent growth in core retail sales for 2024.
Ben Hackett, Founder of Hackett Associates, noted that the recent surge in imports has been largely due to contingency planning: 'The surge in imports over the past few months has clearly been the result of contingency imports by wholesalers, retailers and industrial companies in anticipation of the East and Gulf Coast port strike rather than a sudden increase in demand.'
SeaNews Turkey