To alleviate the domestic shortage of containers, the number of empty containers leaving the Port of Los Angeles increased by 43.3% year on year!

Record cargo volumes and rates between the Far East and the WEST Coast of the United States (USWC) have led to a surge in empty containers at the port of Los Angeles, with people returning to the Far East because freight rates from east to west are five times higher than those from east to west, according to shipping association BIMCO.

In October alone, 325,980 empty containers left the Port of Los Angeles, an increase of 43.3 percent from October 2019.

Imports of loaded containers reached a record 506,613 teU in October, up 29.0% year on year, while the number of exported containers (143,936) rose only 2.6%, meaning that for every loaded container exported, 3.5 containers entered.

The report notes that while trade from the Far East to the USWC is far from balanced as it normally would be, the imbalance has been exacerbated over the past few months as high freight rates and strong demand have prompted carriers to ship containers back to Asia as quickly as possible.

For some, that means refusing to return goods and instead bringing empty containers back as quickly as possible;Spot freight from USWC to FAR East is $754 per TEU and container freight from USWC to Far East is $3,913 per TEU, which is a reasonable decision.

"The unprecedented number of containers arriving in the US and the airlines' decision to forgo return traffic in favour of speed has caused headaches for many stakeholders."One example is American grain exporters, which rely on low freight rates to ship goods to the Far East.

He added: "The strength of US container imports can be attributed to strong consumer demand for durable goods, as well as restocking following the impact of the influenza pandemic earlier this year, and the upcoming holiday season."