Port of Houston Experiences Tremendous Growth in Total Container Volume and Import Volume in First Half of 2022

Over the last few years, the top 10 maritime ports have accounted for approximately 85% of the total twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) volume handled throughout the U.S., which equates to some 27.2 million TEUs through the first six months of the year, a 5.2% increase year-over-year. Import volume at these ports totaled 13.4 million TEUs, up 7.9% from midyear 2021.  

Some ports such as Houston, Charleston, New York/New Jersey and Virginia posted strong annual gains in terms of volume handled. Mid-year TEUs for the Port of Houston totaled 1.89 million, an increase of 18% over mid-year 2021. 

 As some Asian imports were redirected away from West Coast ports, import volumes picked up some of the slack, with large increases at the Ports of Houston (+29.4%), Charleston (+21.2%), and NY/NJ (+12.4%).  

Since the start of 2022, industrial markets around ports have totaled 37.4 million square feet (msf) of new deliveries, accounting for just 1.0% of inventory and 19.3% of the U.S. total. Only Inland Empire, Houston and Savannah exceeded 5.0 msf of new product. Houston has delivered 7.53 msf year-to-date. 

As developable sites are limited in some of the major port markets such as New Jersey and the Greater Los Angeles region, the combined total for projects under construction of the top port markets was 142.0 msf at midyear, representing 20.3% of the nationwide total. However, the bulk of the new developments were concentrated in the Inland Empire, Houston and Savannah industrial markets, making up 61.8% of the total. Houston also leads the country in YTD overall absorption with approximately 12 msf absorbed. 

For more, click here to read our North American Ports Report.