The Port of Los Angeles handled 1,042,652 twenty foot equivalent units in September, the busiest month in its 118 year history, surpassing the previous record set in July 2025 by more than 20,000 TEUs. The month capped the port’s busiest quarter on record, with nearly 3 million TEUs handled between July and September, and nearly 4 million over the four months from June. For the first nine months of 2026 the port has handled nearly 8.1 million TEUs, more than 3 percent ahead of the same period last year.
Loaded imports reached 545,696 TEUs, up 19 percent from a year earlier, while loaded exports climbed 10 percent to 125,751 TEUs. Empty container movements totalled about 371,206 TEUs, also a monthly record, reflecting the imbalance of a surge driven by inbound consumer goods.
Executive director Gene Seroka attributed the run to resilient consumer demand, importers replenishing inventories, and more cargo being allocated to Los Angeles as shippers navigate disruptions on other routes, including the Suez and Panama canals. Greater certainty on tariffs, which have fallen from earlier year levels, has also let importers commit to restocking. The National Retail Federation revised its import forecast upward in September, predicting the month would be the busiest of the year at major US ports, though its forecast calls for volumes to ease in October and November.
The contrast with energy logistics is instructive. Container shipping is setting records on demand strength and rerouting flexibility while tanker and bulk markets are distorted by closed straits and record voyage costs. For commodity watchers, the port data are a demand signal: US goods consumption, the end market for a large share of seaborne raw materials, is still expanding into the fourth quarter.