Northwest Seaport Alliance Witnesses Start of Peak Season

Strong import volumes through The Northwest Seaport Alliance in July suggest peak shipping season is just around the corner, with full imports jumping nearly 12 percent compared to July 2015.

Cargo owners are forecasting a 3 to 5 percent increase in volume during peak season, when retailers build up inventories ahead of the holiday shopping season. The alliance recently launched a program to help extend gate hours at international terminals to reduce congestion and keep cargo flowing through the peak.

Full export containers followed last month’s trend, surging more than 17 percent month over month on the strength of agricultural products. Total container volumes in July edged up 2 percent month over month.

Through the first seven months of the year, total NWSA container volumes are flat, topping 2 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units).

Full import container volumes grew nearly 3 percent year to date to 760,923 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units), while full exports marked a nearly 13 percent year-to-date gain to 542,258 TEUs. Domestic volumes remain sluggish, down 3 percent year to date to 448,357 TEUs due to the weakened Alaskan economy.

In other cargo news, auto imports dipped nearly 3 percent year to date in July, and breakbulk cargo continues to struggle, down 33 percent due to the strong dollar and slowing economic growth in China.