Ports of Virginia and Charleston Report Record August Volume
Two top ports on the East Coast reported that August was a record month for containers, although the data reflects the period before Hanjin Shipping Co. filed for bankruptcy on Aug. 31.
The Virginia Port Authority reported that it handled 235,511 industry-standard 20-foot equivalent units, or TEUs, in August, a 7% jump from the same month in 2015. It is also the highest August volume on record. Volume on intermodal rail is up 20% and truck traffic was up 0.7%. According to public figures, about 62% of containers at the Port of Virginia end up on drayage trucks, while 35% are put onto intermodal rail at on-site yards.
“The peak-season cargo is moving and those volumes are putting the port on pace to exceed last year’s total of 2.5 million TEUs,” said John Reinhart, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority. “Our productivity across the operation continues to trend in positive territory and for the first time in our history, our monthly rail volume exceeded 50,000 units. Further, our import volume in August was up 12% and exports up 3%.”
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Through August 2016, the port reported that TEU volume is up 2% versus the same period in 2015 and rail volume is up 11%. Barge traffic to the Richmond Marine Terminal, which accounts for about 2% of all port containers, is up 27% this year.
Meanwhile, the South Carolina Ports Authority reported a 5.6% increase in containers that it handled to 180,153 as compared to 170,528 last August. For the first two months of the new fiscal year, which began on July 1, the port reported volume in Charleston increased 3.4% year-over-year to 357,420 TEUs.
"August was a stronger month for the port, particularly in loaded container volume," said Jim Newsome, SCPA president and CEO. "I expect to see similar growth over the next few months, as the fall is a traditionally strong season."
August also was a record month for Port Greer, an inland port, with 9,392 rail moves and the total number for July and August is up 12% from the same period in 2015.
The Port of Virginia in Hampton Roads is the sixth largest in the United States based on TEU volume, according to the American Association of Port Authorities, while Charleston ranks ninth.
