The Port of Los Angeles is planning for a possible 5% increase in cargo diverted from other US ports due to conflicts in the Middle East and low-water problems at the Panama Canal, according to Gene Seroka, Executive Director of the Port of Los Angeles.
Seroka spoke at the Port’s media briefing on August 18 in response to an inquiry from Bloomberg:
Seroka provided the rationale for this conclusion:
“Two geographies in question here. One, the Suez Canal, which traditionally on the westbound trade took cargo from Southeast Asia through to the European continent, U.K. and East and, to an extent, the Gulf Coast of the United States. Suez Canal receipts are down about 80% over the last four years due to the security concerns in the Red Sea and the passageway as caused by what’s been taking place [i.e., attacks on shipping] with the Houthi rebels.”
Low water caused by worsening drought conditions resulted in a situation “a few years back [where] we saw drought conditions limit the loadability of vessels going through all three locks at the Panama Canal.”
Prospects for U.S. West Coast Ports
Due to ongoing concerns regarding the Suez Canal and announcements regarding the Panama Canal, it is possible that cargo will be arriving at West Coast ports. In particular, this may affect Southern California.
The cost situation affecting the competitiveness of Gulf and Atlantic coast ports is further complicated by high bunker-fuel costs for ocean carriers caused by the Iran war:
“Realistically speaking, with oil now on the world stage about to hit $90 a barrel, that equates to a downline effect, including that for … vessel fuel. With the longer routes that are being taken on the westbound passage avoiding the Suez Canal, going around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, you’re not only seeing longer transit times but higher levels of fuel burn at exorbitant costs. That adds to the overall landed cost of goods that are coming here by importers. And seeing different routes, like ones through the West Coast, can not only cut down on transit time but also the cost associated with shipping those goods.”
APMT
An added asset at the Port of Los Angeles, Seroka said, was the progress made in improving productivity at APM Terminals (APMT), the largest container terminal at the Port. This has resulted in truck turn times of around 30 minutes.
These improvements occurred as APMT transitioned away from fossil-fuel cargo-handling equipment and toward electrification, reducing transportation costs and downtime for maintenance and repair, according to APMT.
The result has been increased throughput, allowing cargo to be dispatched more quickly to warehouse and rail connections for shipments within Southern California and from the West Coast to end users in the Midwest.
“APMT’s own Pier 400 facility at the Port of LA has worked diligently … to make sure that landside operations remain fluid. APMT just had their best year in 2025, from a volume perspective, in the 26 years they’ve been doing business here at the Port. And their truck turn times, which help facilitate about two-thirds of all the moves in and out of the terminal, are at or near the harbor’s best … right around 30 minutes for truck turn times due to a perimeter delivery system that was implemented by [Managing Director] Jon Poelma and the team at APMT. The reality of that is getting these truckers in and out so they can make more turns, freeing up space for the next vessel to come in.”
Cargo Volume for July
The Port of Los Angeles said its cargo volume for July 2026 was 960,464 TEUs, down from 1,019,837 TEUs in July 2025.
In terms of imports, the July total was 499,552 TEUs, also down from the July 2025 total of 543,728 TEUs. Exports for July totaled 111,776 TEUs, down from 121,507 TEUs in July 2025. Finally, empty containers totaled 349,137 TEUs, down from 354,603 TEUs in July 2025.
Seroka explained:
“We handled more than 960,000 twenty-foot equivalent units, 6% below last July’s all-time record, when businesses front-loaded cargo ahead of tariff changes. Yet that’s still 7.5% above our five-year average for the month.”
The reason for the decline, he said, is:
“Businesses continue to navigate an uncertain trade environment. And when they see a window of opportunity—some relief on tariffs, costs, or timing—they act quickly to move cargo. At the same time, consumer demand has remained resilient, giving retailers more incentive to pull merchandise through the supply chain. That combination has helped keep imports at historically strong levels.”
Seroka further noted:
“In July, we handled nearly 500,000 loaded imports, 8% below last year’s record month but 6% above our five-year July average. Also important to note, year to date, we’ve averaged more than 450,000 imports per month, a near-record high. And just as we’ve seen for more than five years now, there’s not been a single ship backed up in the harbor.”
U.S. Agricultural Exports Lag
Agricultural exports, he said, continue to lag:
“Exports, however, tell a very different story. We handled 112,000 loaded export units in July. That’s down 8% compared with last year. It’s been a tough time for American exporters. We’ve seen year-over-year declines in four of these first seven months. Part of that reflects the headwinds they continue to face in overseas markets. Major anticipated trade deals, including soybeans, have yet to fully materialize.”
Seroka said U.S. agricultural exporters are seeing a major loss of markets:
“The ag segment, which is our biggest on the export side of the Port’s business, is going to be soft to down year over year, and here’s why. We talked a lot over the last 10 years about tariffs and retaliatory tariffs, new shifting trade patterns, etc. But what I’ve seen most from my travels around the world is that traditional trading nations have been making deals with other countries. Soybeans coming out of Brazil and Argentina, almonds from Australia, and a litany of other products. And seemingly deals that have simply bypassed the United States [resulting] from the hard stance that [U.S.] policymakers have taken on imports and tariffs.
“Looking forward, what we can see in the ag sector across the nation is that we only consume about a third of what is harvested. The balance—two-thirds—goes to renewable energy, think of ethanol, and to that overseas trade with emerging markets and longtime partners.”
Republicans Attack California Air-Quality Rules at Ports
On August 6, congressional Republicans introduced resolutions seeking to revoke federal waivers that allow California to enforce strict emissions standards on oceangoing vessels that dock at its ports. Sens. Bernie Moreno of Ohio and Dan Sullivan of Alaska introduced Congressional Review Act resolutions targeting California’s Commercial Harbor Craft and At-Berth rules.
Seroka responded to a question about the resolutions:
“The alternative maritime power, cold ironing, shoreside power—as we know, this product was developed here at the Port of Los Angeles at the China Shipping Terminal 26 years ago. And the idea was to turn off auxiliary engines on these big ships and have them plug into the local electrical grid with our city agency, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
“And the ribbon-cutting for that infrastructure project was done by no less than Xi Jinping when he was Vice President of the People’s Republic of China [and is now President]. So, we’ve got history and a lot of work that’s gone forward today … That notion of plugging in ships is now state law. And it’s a requirement across containers, cruises, going into bulk and tankers in the future because we have so many people who live around this harbor complex … 260,000 residents right here in the harbor enclave and millions more across key commerce corridors” in Southern California who benefit from cleaner air and fewer respiratory ailments.
The success of California’s shore-power initiatives is now “practiced in Asia and Europe … So, we’ve got a lot of momentum here … Happy to talk to policymakers and lawmakers about what all this means, how it enhances jobs from our engineers and electricians to making this place a little bit better to live and work going forward.”
