Port Tracker

For October, the most recent month for which data is available, U.S. imports, for the ports surveyed in the report, came in at 2.07 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), excluding the Port of Charleston, which marked a 1.8% sequential decline and a 7.9% annual decline.  

For May, the most recent month for which data is available, United States imports came in at 1.95 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), marking an 11.8% sequential decline and a 6.4% annual increase, with the latter marking the first annual decline going back to September 2023 and the lowest tally in any month since May 2024’s 1.93 million TEU.

Paced by the current reduction in tariffs on United States-bound goods from China, which is set to expire in mid-August, the new edition of the Global Port Tracker report, which was issued today by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and maritime consultancy Hackett Associates, said U.S.-bound imports are expected to “see a surge through this summer.”

The report said that U.S.-bound imports are expected to be down at least 20%, from June into the fall, with the annual total potentially down by 10%.

For December, the most recent month for which data is available, United States imports came in at 2.14 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units)—which does not include final data from the Port of New York and New Jersey and the Port of Miami—marking a 0.9% decline compared to November and a 14.4% annual increase.

While the expected East and Gulf Coasts’ port strike came to fruition at the end of September and subsequently ended after roughly three days, that is not expected to dint the ongoing stretch of high levels of United States-bound imports, , according to the Port Tracker report, which was issued today by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and maritime consultancy Hackett Associates.

In advance of a potential East and Gulf Coast ports strike at the end of September, United States-bound import volumes are expected to remain elevated, according to the Port Tracker report, which was issued today by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and maritime consultancy Hackett Associates.

For June, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volume, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 2.16 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), marking a 3.6% gain over May and up 17.7% annually. Which brings total volume over the first half to 2024 to 12.1 million TEU, a 15% annual increase.

For May, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volume, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 2.08 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), up 3% compared to March and up 7.5% annually. What’s more, the report pointed out that this marks the highest monthly tally going back to August 2022, when it came in at 2.26 million TEU.

For March, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volume, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 1.93 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), down 1.4% compared to February and up 18.7% annually, a period when Asian export activity was slow on the heels of Lunar New Year shutdowns, it noted.   

Amid various supply chain issues, United States retail container ports are expected to see imports top the 2-million mark in May for the first time since October, according to the new edition of the Port Tracker report, which was issued today by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and maritime consultancy Hackett Associates.

For October, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volume, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 2.05 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), marking a 1.3% gain over September and a 2.5% annual increase, marking the first annual increase going back to June 2022. Along with September’s 2.03 million TEU tally, this represents the second month that time imports have eclipsed the 2 million TEU mark going back to October 2022.

The report said that should its projections for the remainder of 2023 come to fruition, the full-year total, at 22.1 million TEU, which would mark a 13.5% annual decline compared to 2022’s 25.5 million TEU, which was off 1.2% annually compared to 2021’s all-time high of 25.8 million TEU.

For June, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volumes, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 1.83 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), marking a 5.2% gain decrease compared to May and an 18.7% annual decline. For the first half of 2023, total imports came in at 10.5 million TEU, down 22% compared to the same period a year ago.

For May, the most recent month for which data is available, Port Tracker reported that import volumes, for the ports covered in the report, came in at 1.93 million TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), marking an 8.5% gain over April and a 19.3% annual decline.