Steel, plywood, and dry bulk items continued to flow into the country, and demand for exports of U.S. petroleum and crude oil remained robust. Gulf Coast ports reported increased cargo volumes in February, like steel, plywood, and dry bulk products continued to flood into the country.
Imports of steel cargo have increased by 167 percent at the Port of Houston.
In February, the Port of Houston processed 469,396 tons of steel cargo imports, representing a 167 percent increase year over year.
As Port Houston’s executive director stated during the port’s monthly meeting on March 21, “our operational activities reflect the very active flow of cargo over our docks that has continued for some time now at Port Houston.” Our multipurpose facilities, as well as general cargo and breakbulk facilities, are seeing a lot of interest, says a company representative.
The total tonnage of container imports climbed by 67 percent year on year to 2.4 million in February but was down by 6 percent when compared to the previous month.
The steel cargo for March is already approaching half a million tons, according to Guenther, which he described as “a great indicator for the energy sector.”
In February, steel exports from Port Houston fell by 87 percent year on year to 21,992 tons, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
The total amount of export tonnage in February climbed by 5 percent year on year to 2.1 million tons but was down by 10 percent when compared to the previous month.
The amount of twenty-foot equivalent units shipped in February totaled 271,399, representing a 37 percent increase year over year.
According to data from Port Houston, container volume decreased by 16 percent in February compared to the previous month, when the port registered 323,427 TEUs.
During the first two months of 2022, container volume at Port Houston reached 594,826 TEUs, representing a 31 percent growth over the same period last year.
‘Demand on the container trade side of the port is at an all-time high,’ Guenther said, adding that the port is experiencing record traffic.
During the month of February, the port handled 4,737 TEUs in empty import containers, a 23 percent decrease from the same month the previous year. In February, exports of empty containers increased by 226 percent year on year to 73,181 TEUs, according to the Bureau of International Trade.
“Container loads are increasing, which means that the volume of empty containers is increasing enormously,” Guenther explained.
“There are a lot of empty containers being shipped back to Asia to be filled with imported products, which will then be shipped back to the United States as retail goods because the demand for imported goods continues to be so high.” According to our shippers and ocean carriers, we can expect this tendency to continue at least through the end of this year,” says the author.
The number of vessel calls in February climbed by around 38 percent year over year to 619, a decrease of 11 percent from the previous month. The number of barges calling in Port Houston increased by 47 percent year over year to 368 and decreased by 8 percent from January to this month.
Port officials said that they will open extra gates at the Barbours Cut Container Terminal in response to increased cargo traffic, according to Guenther. Other steps are also being implemented in order to limit the number of times containers is left on the dock.
“Beginning in March, we will waive dockage fees for ships that are waiting at anchor and have a berth but are awaiting gang assignments,” Guenther explained. “This will expedite the operation of vessels, allowing cargo to move through the system more quickly.”
Breakbulk quantities in the Port of New Orleans are increasing, but cargo volumes are decreasing.
Breakbulk traffic at the Port of New Orleans increased by 78 percent year on year in February, reaching 191,742 tons, boosted by imports of steel, natural rubber, and plywood.
Although container volume decreased by 56 percent year on year in February to 28,831 TEUs, it was still a record high.
In February, the port handled 10,428 Class I railcar changes, representing a 7% increase over the same month the previous year. Switching operations for the six Class I railroads that operate in New Orleans are handled by the port, including BNSF Railway, Canadian National Railway, CSX, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern, and Union Pacific.
The Port of Corpus Christi has seen a significant increase in the export of petroleum and crude oil.
A record-breaking approximately 13 million tons of cargo passed through the Port of Corpus Christi in South Texas in February, representing a 30 percent year-over-year increase from the same month in 2021.
Shipping of petroleum reached 4.8 million tons in February, representing a 71% rise over the same month the previous year. Exports of petroleum totaled 3.9 million tons for the month, representing a 95 percent raise over the same month the previous year, according to the International Energy Agency.
In addition, the port handled 7.3 million tons of crude oil in February, representing a 22 percent increase over the same month the previous year, according to the port. Exports of crude oil reached a monthly high of 6.7 million tons, representing a 20 percent raise over the same period the previous year, according to the Energy Information Administration.
The Port of Corpus Christi saw 517 ship calls in February, representing a 14 percent increase year over year compared to the same month in 2021.
