Cargo throughput at Port of Los Angeles (Port of LA) surged in June, registering the port's best month yet this year and just shy of 2022's record.

Port of LA said it moved 833,035 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) in June, its best performance since last July and just 5% less than last year's record.

"Cargo volume has increased a remarkable 70% since February with four months of consecutive gains," Gene Seroka, executive director at Port of LA told a media briefing on July 12.

Second half of 2023 to show better numbers than H1

"Although we will likely see cargo ease in July, I'm optimistic that the second half of 2023 will show improved performance compared to the first six months," he added.

June 2023 loaded imports reached 435,307 TEUs, down 2% compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, loaded exports came in at 108,050 TEUs, an increase of 15% compared to last year. Empty containers landed at 289,679 TEUs, a 14% year-over-year decline.

During the first six months of 2023, the Port handled 4,137,379 TEUs, a 24% decline compared to the same period in 2022.

Meanwhile, Seroka was joined at the Port's media briefing by Julie Su, acting US Secretary of Labor, who discussed her role in the recent tentative agreement between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA).

Last week, the ILWU and the PMA reached a tentative agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement for US West Coast dockworkers, ending a gridlock followed by several strike actions that pose to disrupt operations at some of North America's busiest cargo ports.