Twenty-Foot Equivalent

POLA reported that total May volume came in at 779,140 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), representing a 19.5% annual decline. And the Port of Long Beach reported that May volume fell 14.9% annually, coming in at 758,225 TEU.

For the month of January, Descartes noted that U.S. container volumes—at 2,068,943 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)—were up 7.2% compared to December’s 1,929,032 TEU, which were down 1.3% compared to November, and its largest December to January increase in the last six years. While volume saw a sequential gain, they were down 16.1% annually, with the caveat that this tally was only 0.3% below a pre-pandemic January 2019. The report also noted that even though the Lunar New Year was in January, the subsequent...

For May, the most recent month for which data is available, import volume—at 2.4 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)—increased 6% compared to April and was up 2.7% annually. What’s more, this tally represents a new monthly import record, going back to when NRF initially began tracking imports, coming in ahead of the previous record, of 2.34 million TEU, set in March.

Total 2021 POLA volume—at 10,677,609 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)—increased 1,464,213 TEU, or 15.89%, annually, topping 2020 by 13%, and setting a new annual record, too, topping the previous high set in 2018. POLB reported that calendar year 2021 volume—at 9,384,368 TEU—was up 15.7% annually, setting a new annual record, topping the previous record of more than 8.11 million TEU set in 2020.

For April, the most recent month for which data is available, import volume came in at 2.15 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), marking a 33.4% annual gain, for its best April reading ever, compared to April 2020, when the majority of stores were closed, due to the pandemic. This came on the heels of March’s 2.27 million TEU, the record-high for any month, going back to when NRF first started tracking imports.

Various media reports have indicated that the 20,000 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent) vessel Ever Given, which last week ran aground and was tapped in the Suez Canal, is now moving again.

Total POLA volume—at 835,516 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)—saw a 3.6% annual increase, and total POLB volume came in at 764,006 TEU, for a 21.9% annual increase.