- Container Arrivals Drop 44% at LA and Long Beach.
- TEU Volumes Down Sharply Since Late April.
- Truckload Demand Falls with Port Activity.
Current shifts in trade dynamics between the U.S. and China are becoming apparent in shipping patterns at major West Coast ports, particularly Los Angeles and Long Beach. Both of these ports serve as primary portals for Chinese and Asian imports into the U.S., reports CNBC.
Weekly Decrease in Container Traffic
Based on Port Optimiser, a ship tracking system, the number of freight ships leaving China and bound for Southern California has declined 29% week-over-week as of May 3. For the week of May 4–10, vessel arrivals have declined 44% from the same week last year.
Twelve ships are scheduled to arrive within that week, down from 22 only two weeks ago. Container volume is also indicative of this trend, with 62,568 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) arriving early in May versus 120,608 TEUs for April 20–26.
Daily Updated Statistics with Real-Time Ship Movements
The above statistics are based on ship manifests and are inclusive of vessels already out of Asia or in transit to the destination.
Trucking Demand Adjusts to Maritime Trends
The slowdown at sea is influencing trucking availability on land. “We are at a tipping point on the West Coast,” said Ken Adamo, chief of analytics at DAT Freight & Analytics. “Looking at how many truck loads are available versus trucks, we’ve seen a precipitous drop, over 700,000 loads have evaporated nationally in the past week compared to two weeks prior,” he said.
Market Signals Hint at Policy Reassessment
Speaking to investors on Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested that changes may be ahead. A person present at the meeting shared that Bessent acknowledged the trade war with China as “unsustainable” and hinted at a possible de-escalation “in the very near future.”
Ocean Carriers Adjust Services in Response
Several ocean carrier alliances have modified their trans-Pacific services due to prevailing circumstances.
- The Gemini alliance (Maersk and Hapag Lloyd) has a 24.39% cancellation rate
- The Ocean Alliance (CMA CGM, Cosco Shipping, Evergreen, OOCL) is at 18%
- The Premier Alliance (Ocean Network Express, Hyundai Merchant Marine, Yang Ming Marine Transport) is at 15%
- MSC and ZIM have a 10% cancellation rate of sailings
Following an alert from Worldwide Logistics, such blank sailings hit major ports such as Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland, and Seattle. CNBC further reported 80 total cancelled sailings from China as ocean carriers match capacity to current trade volumes.
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Source: CNBC
