The Northwest Seaport Alliance’s total container volumes grew 1 percent for the year for a total of 3.7 million TEUs (20-foot equivalent units).

International volumes in 2017 were the fourth highest in NWSA history. Total international container volume, including empties, increased 4 percent for the year to 2,958,466 TEUs. At 1,513,029 TEUs, import volumes remained flat compared to 2016 volumes. Meanwhile exports were up 7 percent at 1,445,438 TEUs.

Total monthly volumes for the gateway declined 3 percent over December 2016. Imports for the month of December decreased 5 percent to 132,584 TEUs compared to last December. Exports were up 2 percent to 124,903 TEUs.

Total domestic volumes for the month decreased 10 percent compared to December 2016. Alaska’s volumes were down 7 percent for the year due to soft market conditions. Hawaii volumes through the Pacific Northwest were down 2 percent for the year.

Other cargo highlights:

• Log volumes were up 57 percent to 278,078 metric tons for the year due to a consistent demand from China in 2017.
• Other breakbulk cargo volume was up 16 percent to 210,725 metric tons for the year.
• Auto volumes for the year mirrored the overall decline in the North American auto import market. NWSA ended the year down 11 percent, handling 146,885 units.

View the December 2017 cargo reports:

• Container volumes - December 2017
• Cargo statistics - December 2017