Supply Chain Research

U.S. port activity has slowed as a result of the impact of COVID-19 on global trade flows. Volumes shipped via the ports of Seattle and Tacoma fell by 23.5% year over year in April. There’s also been a slide in handling of empty containers of 58.2%, indicating that equipment needed to ensure smooth trade flows may be out of position. Looking across eight ports on both the eastern and western seaboards of the U.S. shows the decline in empty container handling slowed to 15.3% in April from 32.1% in March. That would suggest that not all ports are facing the same challenges.