THE Port of New Orleans moved more containers in 2019 than at any time in its history, totalling 648,538 TEU, up 10 per cent year on year, reported the American Journal of Transportation. The record marks the sixth consecutive year the port surpassed the half million TEU mark at its Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal, which is operated by New Orleans Terminal and Ports America. "Port NOLA has now seen double-digit growth in total container volumes for two consecutive years, primarily driven by the Panama Canal expansion, exports from Louisiana's booming petrochemical industry and a growing market for imports," said port president and CEO Brandy Christian. "Additionally, these record container numbers are balanced by significant loaded import growth, up 12 per cent in 2019," said Mr Christian, who is also president and CEO of the New Orleans Public Belt Railroad Corporation (NOPB). The port gained a new direct service to Asia when it welcomed MSC's Lone Star Express weekly service in 2019. Maersk and Zim partner on the new service that fortifies the port's direct connectivity with Far East markets and offers more shipping options for customers. This is the second direct-Asia service to New Orleans in addition to CMA CGM's PEX 3 service with Cosco, Evergreen and OOCL as partners. Port NOLA now features 12 weekly container services from three major global alliances as well as independent carriers, with direct connections to 60 global ports and more than 450 others through connecting services. The container-on-barge service between Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Memphis continues to thrive and offers shippers an efficient and environmentally friendly option for moving their cargo. The service repositions containers from Memphis to Baton Rouge, where they are loaded with plastic resins and shipped by barge to Port NOLA to be loaded onto container ships for export to global markets