US' retail imports in 2021 show record growth despite pandemic: NRF

“We’ve seen more disruption than ever before because of issues along every step of the supply chain and continued strong consumer demand, but we’re also seeing more cargo and faster growth than ever before. There are still ships to be unloaded and containers to be delivered, but everyone in the supply chain has worked overtime this year to try to overcome these challenges. For the most part, they have succeeded, and consumers will be able to find what they need for the holidays,” NRF vice president for supply chain and customs policy Jonathan Gold said in a statement.

Imports for 2021 are expected to total 26 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU), an increase of 18.3 per cent over 2020 and the highest number since NRF began tracking imports in 2002. The projected total would top last year’s previous record of 22 million, which was up 1.9 per cent despite the pandemic. The growth rate would also be the highest on record, topping 16.7 per cent in 2010 as the economy recovered from the Great Recession. A TEU is one 20-foot container or its equivalent.

While imports do not correlate directly with sales, the record comes as NRF expects holiday sales during November and December to grow 11.5 per cent over last year.

Despite the double-digit import growth for the year, monthly totals have settled to single-digit year-over-year growth, a pattern expected to continue at least through the first quarter of 2022.

US ports covered by Global Port Tracker handled 2.21 million TEU in October, the latest month for which final numbers are available. That was up 3.5 per cent from September but down 0.2 per cent from October 2020, marking the first year-over-year decline since July 2020. The decline ended a 14-month streak of year-over-year growth that began in August 2020 after stores initially closed by the pandemic reopened and retailers worked to meet demand. Even with the decline, October was still among the five busiest months on record.

Ports have not reported November numbers yet, but Global Port Tracker projected the month at 2.21 million TEU, up 5.1 per cent year-over-year. December is forecast at 2.2 million TEU, up 4.6 per cent.

January 2022 is forecast at 2.24 million TEU, up 9 per cent from January 2021; February at 2 million TEU, up 7.3 per cent year-over-year; March at 2.19 million, down 3.3 per cent, and April at 2.2 million TEU, up 2.2 per cent.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KD)