Port of Tacoma officials expect 2002 to be the Port’s best year ever for container volumes, based on first half results and forecasts for the remainder of the year.
The Port expects to handle 1.44 million containers (Twenty-foot equivalent units) in 2002, a 9 percent increase from 2001. To date, the Port’s best container year was 2000, when it handled 1.376 million TEUs. Year-to-date through June, the Port’s container volume is 674,557 TEUs, up 8.3 percent from 2001.
In June alone, the Port handled 148,800 TEUs – an all-time record for monthly volumes.
Paralleling the container volume increase is an estimated 32 percent increase in container lifts for the year in the Port’s three intermodal rail yards to a record 351,000 lifts.
The Port is experiencing strong growth in international container volumes, which were up 15 percent for the first half of the year. Alaskan container trade was down about 2 percent for that same time period.
Two key elements to the growth of international container trade through Tacoma are increases in container trade with China, and the fact that Lloyd-Tristino started a new China service through Tacoma in April 2002.
Other factors contributing to the Port’s container growth include:
– Improving Asian economies and a weaker U.S. dollar, resulting in U.S. export growth;
– “K” Line’s larger vessels that now call in Tacoma; and
– Larger vessels on Hyundai’s Pacific Northwest service.