After three difficult years, numbers are up. It is safe to say more boxes are moving now than at any time over the last two years. Is this simply a period of re-stocking or the start of genuine recovery? And will the recovery extend to an export drive?By George Lauriat, AJOTFirst the good news: Despite the very decided problems with tight money, a high unemployment rate and uncertainty in the retail sector, the signs of recovery abound. The traces of economic revival are to be found in balance sheets and freight movements. The examples of recovery are wide in range. Take tires, for example, an ordinary but necessary item for most Americans. So Il Lee, President of Hankook Tire America Corp, reported, “In 2010, our company has had another successful, record-breaking year in North America, as well as globally. Hankook Tire North America, USA and Canada combined, recorded sales of 12.6 million tires, totaling $1 billion with a growth rate of 21%.” A fourth quarter surge lifted a number of American retailers, including the behemoth Wal-Mart. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based company is not only the world’s largest retailer but annually accounts for nearly a million inbound teus, making it far and away the nation’s largest importer via ocean container. Many mega-retailers adopted a strategy of containing costs, reducing inventory and waiting for the economic tide to rise. “Wal-Mart’s exceptional earnings for the fourth quarter and the full year exceeded our expectations,” said Wal-Mart Stores’ CEO Mike Duke. Duke explained, “The diligent way we managed our businesses and tight control of our costs resulted in the company leveraging operating expenses for the fourth quarter.” Duke added that he expects US sales will be more challenging in the first quarter, as “Wal-Mart US cycles through strong year-over-year comparisons and deflation. We remain focused on growing top line sales, and expect improvement in the United States as the year progresses.” Daniel L. Gardner, CEO of OWL (Ocean World Lines), a New York-based NVO (part of the Pacer Group), when asked by the AJOT about the state of the shipping business, noted, “On the US inbound trade it is hard to say right now what volumes will look like, but what does seem certain is that the carrier community will be adding additional capacity into the Asia-U.S. trade. It also appears that additional capacity will outpace growth in volumes so it is likely that there will be a softening in rates. On the other hand, given the recent increases in oil prices, it is likely that bunker will increase.” “Given the strong volumes we saw from clients on the US-export side of the business, it appears that exports will remain strong, at least in the first half of the year. The dollar’s relative position against other currencies helps this trend a bit, but the increase in commodity prices around the world for agricultural products will also impact export demand. OWL has a robust export business across a variety of agricultural, as well as poultry products and our belief is that those sectors will flourish throughout 2011”, Gardner added. Ground Surge In their February newsletter, Intermodal Association of North America (IANA), reported, “International volume surged 16.9% in the fourth quarter of 2010, helping to push overall intermodal volume up 14.7%.” According to the report, the 18.5% increase in international volume in 2010 was “the highest increase since IANA began reporting intermodal statistics in 1996.” Even with retailers rebuilding inventories, the intermodal surge in the fourth quarter was a clear indicator that freight was again moving, after nearly three years of placid performance. The MHIA (Material Handling Industry of America), an international trade association that represents the material handling and logistics industry, in January released a report stating material handling equipment orders grew 18.0% in 2010 and are forecasted to grow 11.0-12.0% in 2011/2012. Hal Davis, MHIA executive direct