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Not All Ports Are Equal

SEATTLE-Since the peak of containerized trade in 2007, port volume nationwide has shrunk by 15%. However, there has been significant change among ports.

By Alyson Grala | Updated on March 24, 2010

SEATTLE-The US recession–coupled with a global economic slowdown–has trade on its head and seemingly reversed the decades-long trend of growing supply chains and increasing globalization, finds Colliers International research.

Between 2001 and 2008, there was continued container consolidation as the nation‚s top 10 ports increased their combined market share of cargo from 89.2% to 91.6%. At its peak in 2007, containerized freight at these ports had increased roughly 65% since 2001, but it has been receding steadily since the current recession began in 2007, say Collier’s US research director James Cook and regional research analyst Thomas Galvin. The effects of the US recession led to rapid increases in consumer saving and drastic decreases in consumer spending. As global demand for foreign goods decreased, shipping rates fell abruptly and have only slowly begun to recover.

The year 2009 was an exceptionally challenging one from the standpoint of the nation’s leading container ports, as total maritime container traffic continued to decline. “Due to the sudden and large drop in port activity, industrial markets located within regions that service seaports have, on average, recorded losses greater than those of the nation as a whole,” relates Cook.

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