Global Port Tracker also sees ongoing supply-chain disruption

WASHINGTON – Imports at retail container ports reflect robust consumer demand as well as ongoing supply-chain disruptions linked to the pandemic, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

“Operational constraints brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic combined with the surge in consumer demand have severely strained the logistics supply chain,” says Ben Hackett, founder of Hackett Associates.

Hackett Associates and NRF have been tracking U.S. consumer demand that has been goosed by the government‘s economic-stimulus spending. They’re also keeping an eye on congestion at some of the nation’s largest shipping ports stemming from pandemic-related equipment shortages and worker illnesses.

“The year-over-year growth we saw this spring was off the charts because the comparisons were against a time when most stores were shut down due to the pandemic,” says Jonathan Gold, NRF vice president for supply chain and customs policy. “The challenge for retailers and supply chains is keeping shelves stocked as port congestion and other supply chain disruptions continue to impact the industry and the economy more broadly.”

The U.S. economy grew at a 6.4% rate in the first three months of the year, setting the stage for what economists believe may be the strongest year for the economy in about seven decades.

U.S. ports covered by Global Port Tracker handled 2.33 million TEU in May, the latest month for which final numbers are available. That was up 8.6% from April and set a new record for the number of containers seen during a single month since NRF began tracking imports in 2002. The previous record was 2.27 million TEU set in March, when volume was up a record 64.9% year-over-year but the growth rate was artificially high because many Asian factories had shut down due to the pandemic at that point last year and most U.S. stores were being ordered to close.

A TEU is one 20-foot container or its equivalent.

Global Port Tracker, which is produced for NRF by Hackett Associates, provides historical data and forecasts for the U.S. ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle and Tacoma on the West Coast; New York/New Jersey, Port of Virginia, Charleston, Savannah, Port Everglades, Miami and Jacksonville on the East Coast, and Houston on the Gulf Coast. The report is free to NRF retail members, and subscription information is available at NRF.com/PortTracker or by calling (202) 783-7971. Subscription information for non-members can be found at www.globalporttracker.com.