EnContainer handling at Port Houston ended the year on a high with a 20.2% rise in throughput, bringing 2017 as a whole to a 12.7% rise to reach 2.46 million TEUs, Panjiva analysis of official figures shows. Houston’s success has come from a 21.6% rise in imports of loaded containers for the year (including a 26.1% surge in December). The port also proved its resilience after rapidly recovering from August’s storms, outlined in Panjiva research of September 26, to deliver its best month on record (226,483 TEUs) in September.
Source: Panjiva
Houston’s remarkable growth in import handling has been due to a 33.0% surge in shipments from China (including Hong Kong) to reach 341,611 TEUs, Panjiva data shows. That’s been in part due to increased handling through the Panama Canal. Shipments from Mexico meanwhile increased by just 3.6%, but were still 1.45x the quantity from China.
Looking into 2018 the port may face significant regulatory risks, with 48.9% of its incoming shipments from the two countries raising exposure to NAFTA negotiations and the section 301 review of Chinese intellectual property practices.
Source: Panjiva
Among the major container-lines Hapag-Lloyd lost its lead in volumes into Houston to MSC after growing by just 8.9% to reach 335,459 TEUs vs. MSC’s 35.0% surge to 340,589 TEUs. The combined Maersk and Hamburg Sud would have been the third largest shipper after growing 15.1%, but as it was CMA-CGM that was third after a 15.5% rise.
Source: Panjiva
Among the major services it was MSC’s exposure to China that provided it with the superior growth to Hapag-Lloyd, which it also won at the expense of COSCO Shipping which had the second largest service (from China at 119,384 TEUs vs. Hapag-LLoyd’s 155,705 TEUs from Mexico).
Source: Panjiva
