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ArchivePorts & Rail

Port of Los Angeles handles 960,464 TEUs in second-busiest July on record

The port said on Aug. 18, 2026, that July volume trailed 2025's record but ran 7.5% above the five-year average for the month.

By Transport News Staff · Added to the archive

The Port of Los Angeles handled 960,464 twenty-foot equivalent units in July 2026, the second-busiest July in its history, the port reported on Aug. 18, 2026.

The July numbers

July volume was 6% below the record set in July 2025, when businesses rushed cargo in ahead of expected trade policy changes. It was 7.5% above the port's five-year average for July.

  • Loaded imports: 499,552 TEUs, down 8% from July 2025 and 6% above the five-year July average
  • Loaded exports: 111,776 TEUs, down 8% year over year
  • Empty containers: 349,137 TEUs, down 2% year over year

Through the first seven months of 2026, the port handled 6,083,067 TEUs, 1.8% more than in the same period of 2025.

What Seroka said

"After topping 1 million container units in June, we nearly reached that mark again in July," said Gene Seroka, the port's executive director.

Seroka said businesses kept moving cargo when they saw "windows of opportunity amid an evolving trade environment." He said resilient consumer demand was keeping imports at historically strong levels.

He said the port expected another strong month in August, although some cargo that usually arrives later in the season had already moved. "Consumer demand remains the most important variable as we look toward the balance of the year," Seroka said.

At the port's monthly media briefing, Seroka also said the port had the capacity and operational readiness to handle more cargo if changing global trade routes sent more volume to Los Angeles.

Lance Hastings, president and CEO of the California Manufacturers & Technology Association, joined the briefing. He discussed business conditions, manufacturing, trade policy and tariffs.

What it meant for carriers

Loaded imports stayed 6% above the five-year July average, even though they fell 8% from 2025's record.

The port said some cargo that normally arrives later in the season had already moved through Los Angeles. Seroka said consumer demand would be the key variable for the rest of the year.

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