The Port of Los Angeles moved 1.42 million TEUs in September, its finest single month ever and the very best month-to-month quantity ever recorded by a port within the Western Hemisphere, Government Director Gene Seroka mentioned this week. He mentioned decrease tariff ranges, resilient shopper demand, and cargo shifting away from constrained Panama Canal and Suez routes drove the surge.
Report quarter
September imports totaled 546,000 loaded TEUs, up 19% 12 months over 12 months and 26% above the port’s five-year common. Exports rose 10% to 126,000 loaded TEUs, whereas the port dealt with a file 371,000 empty containers as carriers repositioned tools to Asia.
July via September was the port’s strongest quarter on file at practically 3 million TEUs, and June via September moved practically 4 million containers. By way of September, 2026 quantity stood at practically 8.1 million TEUs, up about 3% from the identical interval in 2025.
Seroka mentioned the port expects October quantity of about 900,000 TEUs. He cited typhoon-related schedule disruptions in Asia, cargo “roll swimming pools” earlier than China’s nationwide vacation, and continued holiday-season replenishment as causes volumes ought to stay elevated.
Commerce and sourcing shifts
Seroka in a media briefing mentioned Vietnam is now the port’s second-largest buying and selling associate behind China, whereas Thailand has entered the port’s high 5 for the primary time. Vietnam-origin quantity via Los Angeles has quadrupled over the previous decade, he mentioned.
He mentioned China’s share of port enterprise has fallen from 60% to 40%, however added that diversification has been slower than many importers would really like. Harvard Enterprise College Professor Willy Shih, the briefing’s visitor, mentioned firms are more and more “optimizing for choices” relatively than lowest price, as a result of frequent coverage modifications make long-term commitments tough.
Shih mentioned obvious shifts away from China usually mirror modifications in remaining meeting relatively than a real discount in upstream dependence, since Vietnam and Mexico nonetheless rely closely on Chinese language elements. Constructing comparable provider networks in Mexico may take a few decade, he mentioned.
Tariffs and outlook
Seroka mentioned tariffs stay a central supply of uncertainty, with importers making speedy selections based mostly on price, demand, and coverage deadlines. He mentioned buy orders in Asia stay strong, however November and December are tough to forecast.
He additionally mentioned ocean carriers and shippers are shifting extra cargo to Los Angeles from Panama Canal routings due to drought-related constraints and better gasoline prices tied to Center East battle. Shorter, quicker transits have grow to be extra invaluable, he mentioned.
On operations, Seroka mentioned the port is usually flowing easily, with truck turns wholesome and huge vessels handing over about 4 days. However he flagged rail dwell occasions as an space requiring shut monitoring because the port strikes vacation cargo inland.
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