Imported Cargo Sets Record at Port of L.A.

Forget reindeer. Santa’s gift-laden sleigh is more likely to be found in the belly of a cargo ship heading for the Port of Los Angeles. The port said that during October imported cargo--mostly Asian-made consumer goods slated as holiday shopping fare--set a new single-month record. The port took in nearly 251,000 import containers, beating last October’s total by 26%. In a sign Asia is still on the mend from its 1997 financial meltdown, the port set a new single-month record for exports, largely raw materials bound for Asian manufacturers. Outbound volume of about 94,000 containers topped last year’s count by 24%. In total, the port handled 481,502 20-foot containers in October, also a single-month record, but nearly a third of that came in the form of empty containers that were shipped back to Asia so that they could be filled with more consumer goods.