As consumers continue to buy goods at a
quick pace, more people get vaccinated,
and businesses
reopen contributing
to the strong increase in shipping
volumes. Terminal operators, truckers,
longshore
labor force and supply
chain partners are working round the
clock to process additional cargo and
with
steady progress on workerβs
vaccinations at the port, there has been
a significant reduction on the
number
of vessels waiting offshore.
The strong number of vessels arriving at
the port helped Los Angeles achieve
record volumes and
contributed to
the busiest quarter in the portβs
history. March 2021 marked the strongest
March in the
Port of Los Angelesβ
114- year history. The Port processed
957,000 container units last month and
the
sudden increase is expected to
continue. With retail growth from 2020
to 2021, portβs import traffic will
remain
strong until the summer and to keep up
with demand, vessels will be forced to
anchor before
unloading through the
end of May according to LA Portβs
director, Gene Seroka.
Containers are now spending 3.8 days at
the terminal before being shipped out,
compared with an
average of five
days in February. The Port of L.A. has
remained with all terminals operational
throughout
the Covid-19 pandemic
and the continuing pandemic-related
online retail spending spree is expected
to
push into summer.
