Press Release
June 15, 2015
May Busiest Month in Nearly Four Years at Port of Oakland
Volume up for third straight month; import cargo grows 4.5 percent
Oakland, CA – June 15, 2015: May was the busiest month in nearly four years at the Port of Oakland. The Port said today it handled 213,260 cargo containers last month. That was the most since it reported volume of 216,276 containers in August 2011.
The total volume of import, export and empty containers was up 3.8 percent in May from a year ago. It was the third straight month of year-over-year volume increases reported in Oakland.
“We’re seeing steady improvement – especially in import cargo,” said the Port’s Maritime Director, John Driscoll. “Our job now is to accelerate the momentum.”
Loaded import container volume increased 4.5 percent in May from the same period a year ago, the Port said. Shipments of empty containers back to origins in Asia were up 20 percent. The empty repositioning indicates that Ports are still rebalancing containers dislocated by wintertime trade slowdowns.
Export volume declined 5.6 percent in May, the Port said. The decrease was attributed to a strong dollar which makes U.S. exports more expensive. Nevertheless, export volume of 79,890 containers was the most in Oakland since last October.
Monthly cargo statistics are available at the Port of Oakland Web site: www.portofoakland.com.
About the Port of Oakland
The Port of Oakland oversees the Oakland seaport, Oakland International Airport, and 20 miles of waterfront. Together with its business partners, the Port supports more than 73,000 jobs in the region and nearly 827,000 jobs across the United States. Connect with the Port of Oakland and Oakland International Airport through Facebook, or with the Port on Twitter, YouTube, and at www.portofoakland.com.
Media Contact:
Robert Bernardo
Communications Manager
Port of Oakland
(510) 627-1401
Click here to contact Robert Bernardo
Marilyn Sandifur,
Port Spokesperson
Port of Oakland
(510) 627-1193
Click here to contact Marilyn Sandifur