“This year’s negotiations, although they’re longer, have been quieter and seem to be much friendlier talks than … maybe ever,” said Port of Long Beach spokesman Art Wong.
Wong says cargo volumes at his port slipped a little in August after surging from April through June, when shippers were expediting imports ahead of the labor contract’s expiration.
International Trade Economist Jock O’Connell said that shipping companies did divert some goods away from west coast ports in favor of ports in Canada and on the east coast. That doesn’t always prove beneficial, he says, because other ports don’t have the infrastructure needed to process big cargo loads quickly.