US-BOUND containership traffic from Asia increased four per cent year on year, hitting a record-breaking 1.72 million TEU in June, according to data from Miami research firm Descartes Datamyne, reports Tokyo's Nikkei Asia.
Traffic from South Korea and Vietnam grew by two per cent and 13 per cent, respectively.
This is the 24th straight month of growth as cargo originating from China gradually makes a comeback. But there are concerns that demand in the US will be dampened by inflation.
Traffic from China, which accounts for 60 per cent of shipments originating from Asia, increased by seven per cent. The Port of Shanghai was still affected in June by the pandemic lockdowns and saw a 33 per cent decline in container handling volume.
The country's largest port, Shenzhen's Yantian International Container Terminal saw a 30 per cent increase while the port of Ningbo, in Zhejiang Province, saw a 10 per cent increase, offsetting the Shanghai decline.
Traffic from South Korea and Vietnam grew by two per cent and 13 per cent, respectively.
Shipments of apparel grew 28 per cent and footwear was up 43 per cent, suggesting that consumers in the US are leaving home more often. On the other hand, furniture, this had been supported by strong housing-related demand in the US, decreased by 10 per cent.
Shipping rates remain high, but the downward trend continues. According to the Shanghai Shipping Exchange, shipments early this month from Shanghai to the US west coast cost $7,116 per FEU, four times that of April 2020, when Covid started spreading, but about 10 per cent lower than in early April 2022.
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