The Port of Long Beach, Calif., the second-busiest container port in the United States, continues to log record shipping volume in 2021 due to the significant demand in imports, primarily from Asia.
The port experienced its busiest February on record, according to Freight Waves, which noted imports were up 50.3 percent year-over-year from 248,592 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in February 2020 to 373,756 TEUs in February 2021.
In contrast, exports declined 4.9 percent from 125,559 TEUs in 2020 to 119,416 TEUs in 2021.
According to Freight Waves, the port saw “an unseasonable surge in cargo,” resulting in record-high congestion rates caused by an unprecedented backlog of cargo vessels waiting for berth space.
This follows a record-breaking January when the port handled more than 700,000 TEUs.
“We understand that shippers are awaitin
