The Port of Los Angeles processed 967,900 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) in May, the third best overall month in its 115-year history.
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Five months in to 2022, the Port has processed more than 4.5 million TEUs, equal to last year’s record-setting pace.
“Retailers replenished inventory throughout the spring and now we’ll see a transition to back-to-school goods, fall fashion and some early year-end holiday products,” said Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka. “While American consumers have become more cost conscious, overall demand remains strong.
“Meanwhile, we’ve reached a new productivity milestone on our docks,” Seroka added. “On average, 12,000 TEUs were discharged and loaded back on to every container vessel in May. That eclipsed our own previous best-in-the-business record of 11,300 TEUs recorded last summer.”
May’s 967,900 TEUs rank only behind May 2021 and October 2020 at the Port of Los Angeles.
May 2022 loaded imports reached 499,960 TEUs compared to the previous year, a decrease of 6.8% but 21% higher than the previous five-year May average.
Loaded exports came in at 125,656 TEUs, a 14.3% increase compared to the same period last year. May marked the highest level of exports processed at the Port of Los Angeles since November 2020.
Empty containers reached 342,285 TEUs, down 6.6% compared to last year.
The busiest seaport in the Western Hemisphere, the Port of Los Angeles is North America’s leading trade gateway and has ranked as the number one container port in the United States for 22 consecutive years. In 2021, the Port facilitated $294 billion in trade and handled a total of 10.7 million container units, the busiest calendar year in the Port’s 115-year history.
San Pedro Bay port complex operations and commerce facilitate one in nine jobs across the Southern California counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura. ■
A Fall heatwave will continue into the weekend over portions of the Desert Southwest and central/southern California as a persistent trend of upper-ridging over the region remains in place.