L.A. Harbor’s Inbound Cargo Up in June

Imports flooded through the Port of Los Angeles in June as major domestic retailers continued to bring in more lower-cost, foreign-made consumer goods to fill the racks and aisles at their stores, port officials reported. Last month, Los Angeles harbor--considered the busiest in the nation--took in more than 211,000 import containers, a 31% jump from a year ago. The inbound cargo was mostly consumer products such as clothing, appliances and electronic goods. The amount of cargo shipped out of the port also increased in June as Asian economies continued to rebound from the financial woes of the late ‘90s. The port handled just over 79,000 outbound containers, topping the monthly export totals of every month last year. During the first half of the year, the port also handled 30% more cargo--imports and exports--than in the same period last year. June figures for the neighboring Port of Long Beach, the No. 2 U.S. harbor, were not available.