Los Angeles and Long Beach Ports Report Record June Cargo

The Port of Los Angeles recorded its busiest June in 118 years, processing 1,002,734 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), a 12% increase over the previous year. This marks the third time the facility has surpassed the 1 million container mark in a single month, a milestone not yet achieved by any other port in the Western Hemisphere. Total throughput for the fiscal year reached 10.4 million TEUs, while the first six months of 2026 saw 5,122,603 TEUs, up 3% from 2025.

Simultaneously, the Port of Long Beach reported its third busiest June on record, handling 779,331 TEUs. This represents a 10.6% increase over June 2025, driven by an 11% rise in imports to 387,025 TEUs. Both ports attributed the surge to retailers shifting away from traditional seasonal shipping patterns toward a year-long strategy of front-loading holiday goods.

Industry leaders cite trade uncertainty and the Trump administration's tariff policies as the primary drivers for this behavior. Businesses are moving cargo early to mitigate risks associated with inflation, rising fuel costs, and the July 24 transition from Section 122 to Section 301 tariffs. Additionally, the elimination of de minimis provisions on July 24 is expected to introduce new compliance requirements for small package imports. The National Retail Federation projects that these early peaks in shipping will continue through July as importers prepare for potentially higher tariffs in August.