Port of Long Beach terminal operators handled 774,935 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo last month, a 5.2 percent decline from March 2025 container handling numbers, mirroring the slower throughput from its sister gateway, the Port of Los Angeles.
Like the L.A. port, the Long Beach hub has seen no direct impacts from the war in Iran, in that it hasn’t been the catalyst for the reduced cargo volumes. But Port of Long Beach CEO Noel Hacegaba indicated during a Wednesday media briefing that “global supply chain pressures are indeed mounting” due to the Middle East conflict.
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Imports last month declined 1.6 percent to 374,412 TEUs when compared to prior-year numbers, while exports showed a 0.5 percent uptick to 104,554 TEUs. Empty containers moving through the port dropped 11.1 percent to 295,970 TEUs.
Like many major U.S. seaports, the L.B. gateway is enduring a tough year-over-year baseline comparison against last March, when importers front-loaded cargo ahead of April’s Liberation Day tariffs.
But the tough comparisons did not stop the port’s dockworkers from handling the highest total number of TEUs in North America, both for March and the first quarter. Across January through March, nearly 2.4 million TEUs passed through the terminals at the Port of Long Brach, representing a 5.7 percent drop year over year.
During the briefing, Jonathan Gold, vice president of supply chain and customs policy at the National Retail Federation (NRF), noted that the forecast for imports at major U.S. container ports is expected to remain below last year’s levels for at least the first half of 2026.
While Gold concurred that the ports will not be significantly impacted by the Iran war, the rising fuel costs due to the constriction of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz could eventually effect retailers and consumers.
As retailers aim to be nimble as the situation in the Middle East unfolds, small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are feeling a disproportionate hit to their business due to the elevated costs, he
“Retailers already operate on an extremely slim margin, and small businesses in particular don’t have the ability to absorb cost increases and typically have to pass those along to the the end consumer,” Gold said. “Certainly, the smaller retailers are more impacted by some of these immediate changes than larger companies are.”
Hacegaba noted that the rerouting of ships to avoid the conflict zone is setting off a chain reaction resulting in longer routes, further amplifying the cost increases.
“Ultimately, consumers pay more,” the port CEO said.
However, the consumer has been resilient despite the price increases.
“We still see a strong consumer demand in 2026,” Gold said, citing NRF’s annual projections of a 4.4 percent retail sales increase in 2026. “The consumer remains the bright spot in our economy despite all the various policy and geopolitical challenges that we’ve faced.”
According to Gold, the NRF was “pleased” with the Federal Maritime Commission’s (FMC) decision to reject Maersk’s second petition to waive the 30-day notice required to implement emergency fuel surcharges.
“We agree that importers and cargo owners need clear information on the scope and purpose of any new surcharges and encourage the FMC to continue to evaluate those potential surcharges that the carriers are looking to implement. Unfortunately, as we’ve seen with previous supply chain disruptions, it’s not easy to quickly pivot, especially as the challenge and disruption persists.”
Although the port continues to monitor the global supply chain concerns, Hacegaba doesn’t expect the fallout from the Iran war to take a further chunk out of anticipated cargo volumes.
“As prices rise, demand slows. It’s basic economics, and it’s inevitable. If that happens, volumes could be affected throughout the supply chain, including the San Pedro Bay,” said Hacegaba. “In spite of the headwinds that are cascading across the global supply chain, the outlook for the balance of the year is still positive. We would expect in the long run that after the situation cools, we would see volumes to rise again.”
The NRF and Hackett Associates project that inbound volumes at major U.S. ports will bounce back from April’s expected 5.6 percent declines to rise again in May and June.
May is forecast to jump 7.3 percent to 2.09 million TEUs, while projections for June count a similar 6.9 percent increase to 2.1 million TEUs.
“After the IEEPA tariffs announced last April, you saw drops in in May and June, so you’ll see an increase now because you’re not going to have that immediate hit at those time frames,” said Gold. You’ve also got the start of the holiday shipping season starting in May and June as well.”
