The National Retail Federation is reporting a drop in imports following the release of the Global Port Tracker report. The study was conducted by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

Imports are at their lowest level in two years, due to supply chain issues and a Zero COVID policy by China. U.S. ports covered by Global Port Tracker handled 2.26 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU)—one 20-foot container or its equivalent—in August, the latest month for which final numbers are available. These numbers were up by 3.5 percent from July, but down 0.4 percent from August 2021.

“The holiday season has already started for some shoppers and, thanks to pre-planning, retailers have plenty of merchandise on hand to meet demand,” said NRF vice president for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold. “Many retailers brought in merchandise early this year to beat rising inflation and ongoing supply chain disruption issues. Despite the lower volumes, retailers are still experiencing challenges along the supply chain, including U.S. ports and intermodal rail yards.”

October is forecast at 2 million TEU, down 9.4 percent year over year; November at 2.01 million TEU, down 4.9 percent, and December at 1.96 million TEU, down 6.1 percent.

December's figures are expected to be the lowest since February 2021 at 1.87 million TEU. This was the last time the monthly totals fell below 2 million TEU.

“The growth in U.S. import volume has run out of steam, especially for cargo from Asia,” Hackett Associates founder Ben Hackett said. “Recent cuts in carriers’ shipping capacity reflect falling demand for merchandise from well-stocked retailers, even as consumers continue to spend. Meanwhile, the closure of factories during China’s October Golden Week holiday along with the Chinese government’s continuing ‘Zero COVID’ policy have impacted production, reducing demand for shipping capacity from that side of the Pacific as well.”

The NRF expects the remainder of the year to be down, reaching 12.5 million TEU, down 4 percent year over year. For the full year, 2022 is expected to total 26 million TEU, up 0.7 percent from last year’s annual record of 25.8 million TEU. Imports are predicted to rise slightly in January 2023 at a rate of 2.06 million TEU. However, this number would be down 4.9 percent from January 2022.

It’s predicted that the slowdown will continue into February, reaching 1.8 million TEU, down 15 percent from last year due to the Lunar New Year factory shutdown in Asia.