Containerized import volume at the Port of Oakland in 2015 was essentially unchanged from 2014, according to statistics released. The Port said imports declined just 0.2 percent after dropping nearly 40 percent last January and February.
The import recovery indicates that cargo diverted during a waterfront labor impasse last winter has returned, the Port said. “This was no small achievement given the way the year started,” said Maritime Director John Driscoll.
Oakland import volume plummeted in early 2015 during a West Coast contract dispute between dockworkers and waterfront employers. Since then, Oakland import volume has increased in eight of the past 10 months.
Overall cargo volume – imports, exports and empty containers – decreased 4.9 percent in 2015, the Port said. It attributed the decline to an 11.5 percent drop in containerized exports. That was primarily the result of continued strength in the U.S. dollar, the Port said. The dollar’s relative value makes American goods more costly overseas.
The Port said last month’s import volume decreased 6.3 percent from the same period a year ago. That was not unexpected, the Port said. A year ago, December import volumes spiked due to extraordinary cargo diversions from congested Southern California ports.
Source: Port of Oakland
