Long Beach Again Shatters Import Record

For the second time in as many months, the Port of Long Beach took in a record number of imports as retailers stocked up for what’s expected to be a strong holiday shopping season. Long Beach, the nation’s busiest port, handled roughly 219,000 20-foot cargo containers in September, a 10% increase over a year ago and a jump of roughly 4,300 containers over the previous record set in August. Port spokesman Hal Hilliard said concern among importers over the potential for cargo delays stemming from possible year 2000 computer problems also figured in the surge of inbound containers, which were filled mostly with finished consumer goods such as appliances and clothing. On the export side, the port posted a 12% increase in outbound cargo over a year ago, as Asian countries whose economies are recovering shipped more U.S. raw materials such as scrap paper, scrap metal and hay. On Friday, the neighboring Port of Los Angeles, the nation’s second busiest, reported record imports of 181,000 containers in September and a 9% rise in exports to mark the fifth consecutive monthly gain.