To: Governors Greg Abbott of Texas and Ron DeSantis of Florida
From: Business columnist with a trusty spreadsheet
Re: Ports and supply chain problems
Like all of us, both of you have seen the long line of ships waiting to be unloaded at the nation’s top two ports, Los Angeles and Long Beach.
I recall when times of crisis would prompt statesmanship. You know, “California, how can we help?”
Instead, the pandemic era’s global supply-chain headaches become a chance to throw political barbs and, maybe, steal some business. In the process, governors, you’ve insulted the thousands of hard-working Californians sweating to get goods off boats and headed toward consumers, including shoppers in your states.
“Choose a state that doesn’t see inflation and America’s supply-chain backlog as a good thing,” says a video touted by Abbott’s office. (Psst! Should we blame oil patch Texas for high gas prices?)
“We in Florida have the ability to help alleviate these log jams and help to ameliorate the problems with the supply chain and part of it is because we’ve been long committed to reliable, modern and accessible port facilities,” DeSantis says. (So, two of the world’s busiest ports aren’t?)
Yes, Southern California ports and their supporting infrastructure have not handled the unprecedented rush of shipments flawlessly. And many procedures that seemed workable in normal times have had to be reworked in while under emergency status.
Do not forget, these are uncommon times for shipping.
Good news! The U.S. economy, no less the world’s business climate, is swiftly rebounding from last year’s pandemic-related cooling with a rabid rush to spend by consumers and corporations alike.
Bad news! Nobody kept inventory sitting around before the virus, so playing catch-up to the surging demand has become a costly and painful logistical nightmare that’s generated many ideas of how to improve the entire shipment process.
But the eye-catching collection of anchored ships off the California coast awaiting berthing slots aren’t the result of laggardly local ports. Just ponder shipping stats from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
My trusty spreadsheet told me, for example, that the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach handled 39.2% of the shipping container units moving through the nation’s 10 largest ports in 2021’s first nine months. That share is up from 38.7% in last year’s virus-twisted economy and 37.7% in the good ol’ days of 2019.
In Los Angeles, an average 908,546 units a month moved through in 2021’s first nine months. That’s up 18% vs. 2020, the second-largest gain of the top 10 ports behind Norfolk, Va. And that was up 17% vs. 2019, the No. 5 jump.
Down the shore, No. 2 Long Beach handled 788,317 units, year to date, up 17% vs. 2020, for the No. 5 gain, and up 24% vs. 2019, the nation’s top performer.
Now, consider the other eight big U.S. ports. Combined, they handled 2.6 million units, up 15% vs. 2020 and 2% vs. 2019 — smaller increases than seen in Southern California.
Governors, dare I mention the top 10 ports in your states?
Houston? 278,551 units a month in 2021, No. 7. That’s up 12% vs. last year (No. 7 gain) and up 12% vs. 2019 (No. 6).
Jacksonville? 117,105 units, No. 10. That’s up 8% vs. 2020 (No. 9 gain) and up 5% vs. 2019 (No. 8).
Could we view limited growth at your ports as private industry voting with their ships?
Yes, container counts don’t tell the full story. Plenty is required to get goods to their final destination — and the logistics game has a few rough spots to smooth out, in Southern California and across the nation.
We’ve learned tough lessons about the fragility of the supply chain in the pandemic era. Is it an opportunity for improvement or winning style points?
Maybe the nation asks too much of Southern California’s ports. Perhaps Oakland — the nation’s No. 9 port with minimal shipment gains this year — could be part of a solution without stirring any state vs. state rivalries.
It’s not just about stuffed or empty docks. An adult discussion will be required across the country to create a more durable supply chain. The rethinking will involve everybody from the manufacturer to all the shipping and delivery intermediates to the end-user to the workers who’ll accomplish these chores.
One thing’s certain: Partisan chatter won’t fix anything.
Jonathan Lansner is business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com
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