Japan’s container exports to the United States reached 58,333 TEUs in October, marking a 7.1% year-on-year increase, according to Descartes Datamyne.
Monthly exports remained above 50,000 TEUs from January through August, dipped below this threshold in September, and rebounded in October. Direct shipments from Japan to the US surged by 19.7% to 43,375 TEUs, while transshipped containers declined by 17.9% to 14,958 TEUs, representing 25.6% of total exports.
Analyzing transshipment volumes in specific regions, 10,127 TEUs were transshipped via South Korea, a 15.2% decrease; 1,961 TEUs via China, a 22.7% drop; and 1,415 TEUs via Taiwan, down 29.5%.
In contrast, container trade from the US to Japan rose significantly in September, increasing by 20.2% year-on-year to 59,203 TEUs. Direct shipments from the US to Japan totalled 44,587 TEUs, an 11.5% increase, while transshipped containers surged 57.5% to 14,616 TEUs.
Among transshipment hubs, South Korea’s volume dropped by 56.5% to 2,200 TEUs, while China’s transshipment volumes skyrocketed by 449.7% to 1,946 TEUs. Panama handled 1,922 TEUs (though comparable data for September 2023 was unavailable), and Cartagena’s volume soared from 19 TEUs to 1,635 TEUs.
Furthermore, direct US shipments to Japan showed varying trends by destination port: Tokyo received 32,459 TEUs, up 111.1%; Yokohama, 21,905 TEUs, up 94.1%; Kobe, 7,186 TEUs, down 14.1%; Nagoya, 1,585 TEUs, down 69.3%; and Osaka, 784 TEUs, down 25%.
