U.S. longshoremen reached a contract agreement with ports and shippers Jan. 8, averting a potential strike that could have damaged the American economy.

A U.S. dockworkers’ union and their employer group will meet in New Jersey on Jan. 7 with just over a week to hammer out a deal on a new labor contract.

The world’s No. 2 container carrier urged customers to remove cargo from East and Gulf Coast ports in the U.S. to avoid the possible strike.

Facing a mid-January deadline to reach a deal, the planned talks are a welcome sign for shippers bracing for a labor disruption that would shut every major port on the U.S. East and Gulf coasts.

The Port of Los Angeles is set for its busiest December on record, and the Port of Long Beach is on track to have its best-ever year after the hubs handled an early and sustained peak season.

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump voiced his support for the dockworkers union before their contract expires next month at Eastern and Gulf Coast ports.

Imports at the Port of Los Angeles last month totaled 462,740 20-foot-equivalent units, or TEUs. The port also handled 122,716 export containers and 319,570 empty containers in October.

The U.S. dockworkers union that halted cargo at every major port on the country’s eastern and southern coasts last month has called off talks with their employers over automation.

Dockworkers are set to meet with their employers in New Jersey, resuming negotiations on the key issue of automation that sparked a three-day strike at East and Gulf Coast ports last month.

Two terminals operated by Termont Montreal that account for about 40% of the port’s container handling capacity have been closed since Oct. 31 after unionized dockworkers walked off the job