The Port of Los Angeles handled 752,893 TEU in May, reflecting a decrease of 3 per cent from last year’s May.
Despite the decrease, the port revealed that overall freight volume is still 18 per cent ahead of 2023 after five months.
Port of Los Angeles Executive Director, Gene Seroka, said: “We continue our trend of strong , consistent volume that started at the beginning of the year. As we gear up for the second half of the year, our forecast indicates more robust activity on our docks throughout the summer.”
Seroka said that he will go to Taiwan and China next week for discussions aimed at increasing cargo volume and lowering the port’s carbon impact.
Los Angeles and Long Beach ports will co-sponsor a China-US Green Shipping Corridor in Shanghai, bringing together port executives and other stakeholders to develop a worldwide commerce route to Southern California using low- and zero-carbon vessel fuels.
“More cargo. More jobs. And decarbonising global trade,” Seroka added. “That’s our objective now, and into the future.”
The port’s May 2024 loaded imports were 390,663 TEU, a 4.5 per cent decrease from the previous year. Loaded exports totalled 125,963 TEU, a 24 per cent increase from the previous year.
Additionally, May represented the 12th straight month of year-on-year (YoY) export growth. The port processed 236,268 empty cargo, a 12 per cent reduction from 2023.
Recently, the Los Angeles Harbor Commission approved a $2.6 billion dollar budget for the City of Los Angeles Harbor Department for fiscal year (FY) 2024/25.