THE Port of Long Beach has achieved yet another single-month container throughput record in October, marking the third time in 2020 that the port has broken a record for cargo movements within a single month.

A total of 806,603 TEU moved through the Port of Long Beach in October representing a more than 17 per cent increase in trade. They surpassed the previous best month record which had been set in September 2020 by more than 11,000 TEU. In July 2020 the port also set a new record with just over 753,000 TEU.

Mario Cordero, executive director of the Port of Long Beach, said: "The peak holiday shipping season is supporting our ongoing recovery and record highs, but we are now facing a new wave of COVID-19 cases spreading across the country and remain locked in a trade dispute with China. We are optimistic about the gradual economic recovery while bracing for any shocks still to come."

The surge in cargo comes as retailers continue to prepare for the holiday shopping season, a rise in e-commerce, and an increased demand for gardening equipment, pet supplies, and musical instruments, the port said. A total of 94 container ships called at the port in October, 18 of which were unscheduled vessels that made up for voyages cancelled earlier this year.

Imports jumped nearly 20 per cent compared to October 2019 with 402,408 TEU, but exports continue to be down. The port reported a nearly 13 per cent decline in the number of exports and further emphasising the trade imbalance and empties heading overseas. Shippers and carriers have both been reporting that containers are in short supply and have been working to retrieve empties and reposition them within their networks.

In the first ten months of 2020, the port is now reporting a better than two per cent gain in total volume to over 6.5 million TEU. The gains in volume come from inbound traffic this year with the outbound loaded volume nearly flat year over year, reports The Maritime Executive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.