Port of Los Angeles inactive in May; COVID-19, trade war threaten peak season

The novel coronavirus crisis and China-U.S. trade tensions awakened concerns that the Port of Los Angeles would grow inactive during the peak holiday shipping season. This came after the seaport was seen at its weakest in May in more than a decade, Executive Director Gene Seroka said on Wednesday.

May had seen the busiest seaport in the United States treading at its slowest pace since the Great Recession of 2009. May volume dropped 30% from last year as business shutdowns and U.S. trade policies disrupted global supply chains, Seroka said.

This is likely to drag shipping activity during holiday shipping which runs from August to October. Though this is the case, analysts believe that recovery is still possible, forecasting an increase in consumer spending in the first quarter of 2021. This is expected to support ocean cargo at the end of 2020.