The JOC reports that the Port of Long Beach has suffered from niche carriers' losses: Earlier this year, The Containership Co. went out of business. Niche carriers CSAV, Matson Navigation Co., Horizon Lines and Grand China Shipping each pulled a string of ships from the trans-Pacific, and those carriers were all calling in Long Beach.
Containerized imports plummeted 20.8 percent, exports were down 21.4 percent and empty containers fell 19.3 percent from October 2010. The past year has been a difficult one for carriers in the trans-Pacific as severe overcapacity and weak demand resulted in a steady decline in freight rates.
The erosion of freight rates was especially difficult for niche carriers that operate small 3,000-TEU vessels, as their per-unit costs are higher than the larger carriers. Many of the larger carriers operate vessels of 8,000-TEU capacity or greater.