Imports Jump 22% at Port of Los Angeles

Shipments of foreign goods into the Port of Los Angeles increased 22% in September compared with a year earlier as U.S. businesses stocked up for the holiday shopping season. Exports also rose. About 221,000 20-foot container loads of goods entered the nation’s busiest seaport last month, compared with 181,000 in September 1999. Exports from Los Angeles increased 19%, to 79,000 containers. The imbalance between imports and exports has forced shipping lines to send many cargo boats back to Asia piled high with empty containers. The number of empties shipped back to Asia and other destinations through Los Angeles rose 37% in September, to 123,000 containers.