SIMIC

The October box traffic was also down on the 898,941 TEU the port handled in September 2021, and significantly lower than the 954,377 TEU the port processed in August 2021.

However, the year-to-date numbers are tracking about 15 per cent above last year as a whole. And October 2020 saw the most cargo moved in that month in the port's history - a high that came amid a streak of record-breaking months. In October 2019, the port reported 770,188 TEU - or about 17 per cent less than last month.

LA port expects to reach 10.8 million TEU for this calendar year, breaking the 2020 record. Together with neighbour Port of Long Beach, an estimated 20 million TEU are expected to flow through the San Pedro Bay Complex this year.

The Port of Long Beach moved 789,716 TEU last month, a 2.1 per cent decline from October 2020, but 14.7 per cent better than the same period in 2019. Through October, the Long Beach port had moved about 7.9 million TEU this year - a 21 per cent increase compared to the first 10 months of 2020.

The twin ports are the two busiest in the nation.