Seattle-area ports successfully navigated snarled global supply chains to the tune of $2.7 billion in increased export value in the first half of 2021.
That’s thanks in part to pre-pandemic investments coming to fruition, according to Greater Seattle Partners.
The public-private economic development organization for the ports of Seattle, Tacoma and Everett and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport released a report Sept. 1 showing that overall export values rose 17.3% for the four ports, which sent goods to 188 countries during the first half of the year.
Top export countries like South Korea and the United Kingdom increased purchases of U.S. aircraft and spacecraft components. Those nations and China also bought more agricultural goods like cereals, dairy products and eggs.
The surge in demand came despite closures and partial closures in China and elsewhere during the Covid-19 pandemic that disrupted the flow of goods for the global logistics industry, said Josh Davis, vice president of global trade and investment Greater Seattle Partners.
The gains for the Seattle-area ports follow consistent declines in the dollar value of exports since 2016, reaching a “trough” in 2020, Davis said. Many of the top exported products are produced out of state and flow through Puget Sound ports to international customers.
The ports have faced other headwinds. Rapidly shifting demand for goods during the pandemic has fueled an “asymmetric” distribution of shipping containers and containerized vessels, Davis said. That’s pushed costs for a single shipping container up to $8,000 or even $12,000, compared with around $1,800 in 2018.