The CEO of the Northwest Seaport Alliance (Seattle/Tacoma), John Wolfe, has blamed the ports’ declining volumes on lower rail handling costs at regional competitors Vancouver and Prince Rupert. NWSA has certainly underperformed its peers to the north and south with a 4% decline in handling in the past year vs. a 12% rise for west coast Canada and 6% for California. The bigger challenge will come from duties on Chinese exports which could eventually be extended to all products. China accounted for 40% of inbound traffic to Seattle and Tacoma in the past 12 months, similar to Oakl...