Container trade climbs in December

The Port of Long Beach finished 2001 with container cargo gains in December, including the first percentage increase for exports in 13 months. The total in December, including import, export and empty containers, was the equivalent of 359,543 twenty-foot container units, an increase of 2.3 percent compared with December 2000.
The gains were led by a 6 percent increase in import containers, which climbed to 191,584 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), as retailers restocked imported clothing, shoes and toys after a better-than-expected holiday shopping season.
The number of empty containers declined by 7.8 percent to 84,299 TEUs, but export containers rose 5.4 percent to 83,661 TEUs. The port's exports include factory equipment and raw materials such as plastics and chemicals.
"The export total is our highest since March 2001 and hopefully is the beginning of a stronger overseas market for U.S. products," said port Executive Director Richard D. Steinke.
For the full year, shipping terminals at the port handled 4,462,971 TEUs in 2001, a 3 percent decline from the previous year, reflecting the weak economies in the United States and Asia. The privately operated terminals reported a 1.4 percent decline in imported containers, an 8.8 percent drop in exports and a 1 percent decrease in empty containers.
While there remains economic uncertainty in the Far East and the United States, Steinke said the long-term outlook is promising, especially with China's entry into the World Trade Organization.
To accommodate the projected growth in trade, the port this summer will open the first phase of a 375-acre, $576 million container terminal leased to Hanjin Shipping Co. Ltd. of South Korea. Also, the $2.4 billion Alameda Corridor, which will speed trains between the waterfront and transcontinental rail yards, opens in the spring. In the fall, Mediterranean Shipping of Switzerland and Seattle-based Stevedoring Services of America are scheduled to move into Hanjin's existing 170-acre terminal in Long Beach.
"Despite last year's challenges in this country and overseas, we have to thank our customers for their support and commitment to the Port of Long Beach," said Steinke.