TEU

United States-bound containerized freight imports finished 2023 on a growth track, for the fourth consecutive month in December, after a 14-month stretch of annual declines, according to data recently issued by S&P Global Market Intelligence. December imports, at 2.2 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), increased 9% in December, matching November’s annual percentage gain. For all of calendar year 2023, S&P reported that imports fell 8.5%, to 28.9 million TEU, while the fourth quarter posted an 8% annual improvement.

From November to December, Descartes reported that U.S.-bound container import volumes eked out 0.4% increase, to 2,107,012 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), topping December 2022’s 1,929,032 TEU tally by 9.2% and was up 10.6% compared to pre-pandemic December 2019’s 1,904,828 TEU.

The Port of Los Angele reported that total November volume, at 763,262 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), posted a 19% annual gain, and the Port of Long Beach reported that total November volume, at 731,033 TEU, saw a 24.2% annual increase.

November imports, at 2.41 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), increased 9% annually, following a 5% annual gain in October. On a year-to-date basis through November, imports are down 9.9% annually, to 29.3 million TEU.  

For October, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volume, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 2.05 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), marking a 1.3% gain over September and a 2.5% annual increase, marking the first annual increase going back to June 2022. Along with September’s 2.03 million TEU tally, this represents the second month that time imports have eclipsed the 2 million TEU mark going back to October 2022.

From October to November, Descartes reported that U.S.-bound container import volumes fell 9%, to 2,099,408 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), which the company observed is consistent with late-in-the-year declines seen in recent years. For the same period, from 2019 through 2022, volumes were down 8.2%, 8.3%, 5.0%, and 12.0%, respectively.

October imports, at 2.64 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), increased 5% annually, following a 1% annual gain in September. On a year-to-date basis through October, imports are down 11.5%, to 24.02 million TEU.  

POLA reported that total October volume, at 725,775 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), was up 7% annually. The Port of Long Beach reported that total October volume, at 755,150 TEU, was up 14% annually.

From September to October, Descartes reported that U.S.-bound container import volumes increased 4.7%, coming in at 2,307,918 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), which it said was inconsistent with the Peak Season decline that traditionally starts in the August timeframe, while rising 3.9% annually.

The report said that should its projections for the remainder of 2023 come to fruition, the full-year total, at 22.1 million TEU, which would mark a 13.5% annual decline compared to 2022’s 25.5 million TEU, which was off 1.2% annually compared to 2021’s all-time high of 25.8 million TEU.

The story of the economy since the onset of the pandemic has been the resilience of consumers and how consumption has powered the economy. That was the word from Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the Washington, D.C.-based National Retail Federation (NRF) on a media conference call hosted by the Port of Los Angeles this week.

The Port of Los Angeles reported that total September volume, at 748,440 TEU, was up 5% annually, marking its second consecutive month of annual growth. The Port of Long Beach reported that September marked its highest-volume September on record, with volume at 829,429 TEU, increasing 11.8% annually, and topping the previous September high in 2020 by 78,849 TEU.

September imports, at 2.54 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), increased 1% annually as Peak Season begins in earnest. On a year-to-date basis through September, imports are down 13% annually, at 21.38 million TEU.  

From August to September, Descartes reported that U.S.-bound container import volumes saw a 0.3% increase, coming in at 2,203,452 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), which the report observed differs from the decline that typically occurs over the last third of the calendar year.

For August, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volume, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 1.96 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), which is up 2.3% over July, and down 13.5% annually, marking the highest monthly volume on a year-to-date basis, while falling short of a projected 2 million TEU, for the month, in the report’s previous edition.