February Data Shows Increase in Port of Oakland Imports, Exports

In February, the Port of Oakland witnessed a notable increase in container traffic, exceeding the figures from the same month the previous year.

The port observed a fourth straight month of import growth, with a 32.1% jump to 76,734 Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) from 58,073 TEUs in February of the prior year. This rise is attributed to strong consumer expenditure in Northern California, as mentioned in the port's statement.

Exports at the port also increased significantly, by 24.2% to 69,242 TEUs in February from 55,279 TEUs in the same month of the previous year. This increase, the third in as many months, reached the highest level of monthly exports since May 2022.

For the initial two months of 2024, the total full TEUs have surged by 18.1% in comparison to the corresponding timeframe in 2023.

Bryan Brandes, the maritime director at Port of Oakland, commented, "The trends we saw in previous months have continued in February. Consumer demand remains strong in Northern California & Rocky Mountain states region for imports and in Asia for the region's exports. We believe that cargo volume will continue to modestly grow for the rest of the year, reversing some of the declines we saw in 2022 and 2023."

The port saw a reduction in empty container imports by 9.8% to 13,142 TEUs in February from 17,299 TEUs the year before.

Moreover, there was a 7.2% decrease in empty exports, totaling 23,633 TEUs in February, down from 38,014 TEUs in the same month of the previous year. This decline for the seventh consecutive month hints at a growing trend of shipping containers returning to Asia filled with American goods rather than empty.