General Notes
The ILWU (West Coast Dock Workers) now have a tentative agreement with the PMA (Pacific Maritime Association)
The agreement has not been ratified by either group yet, and will be voted on by the union workers in the coming months.
Port of Vancouver is currently shut down
Potential UPS Strike
At the start of July we see that all US ports are operating with minimal delays.
Notably Oakland, Savannah, and Norfolk all show several vessels waiting to berth. However, some of this backup is due to the 4th of July holiday and should resolve over the next week.
Fuel Updates
Ocean Fuel (VLSFO) trended down through Q3 and Q4, the price was volatile throughout Q1. Through Q2, 2023 price has dropped slightly compared to Q1 and has been stable.
This fuel type is up roughly 25% over its 2019/2020 levels.
Diesel in the USA as the start of July is $3.77 a gallon (California is $1.00 more per gallon)
While diesel has seen slight declines throughout the first half of the year, the price continues to keep freight prices high.
Additionally, average diesel prices reported by EIA.gov are typically lower than truck stop prices, and are average across large sections of the country.
Data Analysis
May imports mirrored 2019, continuing the overall trend of 2023 mirroring 2019.
Import trends April to May mirror previous years with growth, and while the overall container import count is lower than last year, is still showing growth over 2019
East / Gulf Coast Ports continue to handle more volume than the west coast, by a small margin.
The PDF below is port-by-port review across the U.S. in July 2023 compared to 2022 & 2021.