Container Volumes Surge at Major U.S. Ports as Tariff Front-Loading Drives Up Freight Rates
Claire Weston
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach both posted historic June throughput, with loaded imports up more than 10% year-on-year. This means → the tariff window is compressing second-half demand into the present, and rising freight rates are only the first consequence.
How extreme were June's port numbers?
The Port of Los Angeles handled over 1 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units — the standard measure of container throughput) in June, a single-month record. Loaded inbound boxes topped 530,500 TEU, up 13% year-on-year.
Long Beach moved more than 779,000 TEU, up 10.6% — its third-busiest June on record. Imports rose 11% to over 387,000 TEU.
Combined, the two ports pushed first-half loaded imports past 5 million TEU. This means → the last time that threshold was crossed was during the 2021–2022 pandemic-era anomaly.
Why are empty containers surging too?
LA's empty-box volume jumped 17% to roughly 345,800 TEU; Long Beach empties rose 14% to nearly 306,000 TEU.
In plain terms = almost all those empties are heading back to Asia — "send the boxes back so they can be filled again." The fact that empties are growing even faster than loaded boxes signals importers expect another wave of cargo ahead.
Exports, by contrast, were flat to slightly down — LA shipped about 126,400 TEU, Long Beach dipped 1% to roughly 86,000 TEU. This reflects a boom driven almost entirely by one-way imports, not a two-way trade recovery.
How much have freight rates risen, and who is profiting?
The Shanghai-to-LA spot rate has climbed for ten straight weeks, reaching $6,482 per 40-foot container last week — the highest since 2024, yet still roughly half the 2021 peak.
Higher rates are directly improving carrier earnings outlooks: Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd both raised second-half profit guidance recently.
Matson, a small US carrier focused on trans-Pacific express service, has seen its stock rise roughly 70% year-to-date. In plain terms = the front-loading rush has made "the people who move the boxes" the most direct winners.
Why do some analysts call this demand "borrowed from the future"?
Freightos head of research Judah Levine warned: "You are pulling forward demand that should have come later." He noted that capacity on some routes is already loosening and carriers are offering discounts.
Data from supply-chain platform Vizion is even more telling: combined June orders for knit and woven fabrics exceeded any single month in the past three years — and June has never historically been a peak import month. Woven goods (denim, jackets, fall custom apparel) more than doubled year-on-year.
This means → when fall merchandise surges in June, inventory is being moved artificially early. This is not a normal peak season — it is panic front-loading.
How long can this front-loading wave last?
The National Retail Federation (NRF) expects the rush to continue through July and potentially set a single-month import record. Retailers are bracing for higher tariffs starting in August and supply-chain disruption from the Iran conflict.
The Trump administration's temporary 10% tariff on major trading partners expires July 24, but is expected to continue in some form.
NRF's Port Tracker forecasts August imports will fall 4.5% year-on-year and keep declining through at least November. In plain terms = the current boom is "borrowed prosperity" — after July, ports are likely to hit a pronounced cool-down.
Content is for reference only, not financial advice.