News
Outbound containers to the U.S. from 10 major countries and regions in Asia totaled 1,801,766 TEUs in March, growing 0.4% from the same month of last year and registering a year-on-year increase for the 21st month in a row, according to American research company Descartes Datamyne. In the first quarter (January-March), they amounted to 5,198,201, rising 0.4% from the corresponding three months of 2021.
Looking at exports from Asia in March by origin, those from China shrank 2.4% to 1,031,929 TEUs, marking their first year-on-year contraction in 22 months. However, they managed to hold the largest share of the pie, as those from Vietnam and India both plunged much more severely. More specifically, they decreased 10.7% to 153,462 TEUs, finishing in third place, and 29.9% to 73,303 TEUs, in sixth, respectively. Ranked second were containers from South Korea, which improved 4% to 197,699 TEUs, while those from Taiwan swelled 3.1% to 98,047 TEUs, coming in fourth place. Japan was the ninth-largest source, exporting 38,083 TEUs, which plummeted 13.1%.
As for container imports from the U.S. to Asia, those from Los Angeles and Long Beach soared 16% in total from the previous month at a time when many U.S. ports were still in trouble. From a year earlier, outbound container volumes fell 3% at Los Angeles and 1% at Long Beach. Year-on-year decreases were smaller than earlier months at both ports. In contrast, container shipments from the East Coast port of New York surged 14% and from the Gulf Coast port of Houston, 33%. These figures indicated that shifts to exports from East Coast and Gulf Coast ports continued.
