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SoCal Ports Volume Boom Portends Bright Holiday
The Southern California Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are handling record volume of cargo, as retailers stock up for the holiday season. But whether that promise of sales leads to consumer shopping is yet to be determined, though retail experts say key economic trackers are on an obvious upswing.
The National Retail Federation’s (NRF) Matthew Shay says, “Retail sales showed impressive gains in September. Consumers continue to prove their resilience and strength through this pandemic. Retailers and consumers are adapting to the current environment, embracing shopping in different ways and focusing on specific categories.”
The Port of Los Angeles processed 883,625 TEUs in September, an increase of 13.3% compared to 2019. It marks the busiest September as well as the best single three-month quarter – 2,701,847 TEUs – in the Port’s 114-year history.
NRF’s outlook points out those positive numbers from the country’s largest port complex, in Los Angeles and Long Beach, are backed up by additional numbers that provide optimism. Consumer confidence rose by about 17 points in September, and the U.S. Department of Commerce reported last week that retail sales were up by 1.9% in September from August, the fifth straight month of retail-sales growth at stores, restaurants and online.
September retail sales were up 5.4% year-over-year, a number that is more than triple the 0.6% month-over-month increase and nearly double the 2.8% year-over-year increase in August. Sales have been up both month-over-month and year-over-year each month since June following record monthly drops this spring, notes NRF.
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