Dive Brief:
- Loaded imports were down year-over-year (YoY) at the Port of Los Angeles for April, but with a decrease in volume of less than 1% the port called it "essentially flat." Meanwhile, Long Beach saw its YoY volume grow slightly by 1.7%. The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) saw 11.4% growth in its YoY import volume.
- On the East Coast, the Port of Virginia saw a big increase in April loaded import volume with 22% YoY growth. The Port of Savannah saw 8.6% YoY growth. The Port of New York and New Jersey has not reported its April numbers.
- Spot shipping rates from China to the U.S. West Coast have dropped 14.6% in the last month, but have increased by 3.5% compared to this time last year. Shipping rates from China to the U.S. East Coast have increased 3% in the last month and 21% in the last year, according to Freightos.
Dive Insight:
Signs of the reignited trade war will not yet be present in the April shipping volume. It wasn't until early May President Donald Trump increased the rate on list three and released a proposed fourth list of tariffs. But ports still acknowledged the trade atmosphere in the release of their monthly numbers.
"While we continue to monitor the effects of tariffs, we remain committed to supporting our customers move cargo efficiently through our gateway," Tong Zhu, NWSA’s chief commercial officer and chief strategy officer, said in a statement.
April numbers showed the seasonal uptick in volume on the West Coast as trade moves out of its post-holiday slump between February and March.
"We knew April was going to be a productive month and as we move toward peak season, this and higher volume levels will become normal, but we are more prepared for these increases than ever before,” John F. Reinhart, the CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority, said in a statement.
View the latest East Coast numbers here and the West Coast number here.
