Virus disruptions may cause 20% cargo decline at US ports

Washington

THE novel coronavirus has cut deeply into the volume of cargo crossing the docks at US seaports in a further sign of the economic turmoil caused by the outbreak.

First-quarter cargo volume at US seaports will be down as much as 20 per cent from the prior-year period due to the coronavirus, according to an estimate from the American Association of Port Authorities, a Washington, DC-trade association representing public port facilities.

Cary Davis, the group's director of government relations, said a key contributor to the estimate are cancelled sailings to and from parts of Asia where the impacts of the coronavirus have been most severe.

Every port is situated differently, but "looking port-by-port, we either see that they're unaffected or down drastically," Mr Davis said. He also cautioned actual cargo volumes could turn out differently, such as if cancelled sailings could be reinstated as supply chains recover.

The slowdown highlights the broad economic turmoil caused by the virus that has roiled global financial markets as the pathogen has spread from China to every populated continent, with more than 90,000 confirmed cases globally. And for now, ports on both sides of the US are feeling the brunt of the virus, or expect to soon.

"I think it's potentially an important indicator of the scope of the impact of the virus on the economy," said Joshua Meltzer, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "I would expect it to bounce back. It depends on how long this virus goes on."

The Port of Los Angeles, the largest US container port, saw cargo volumes fall roughly 25 per cent in February compared to the prior year, the authority has said.

Executive director Gene Seroka said that could drag the total container volume in the first quarter down 15 per cent from a year ago. China accounts for about half of the Los Angeles port's inbound and outbound cargo traffic. BLOOMBERG