Competition in the United States for imports from Asia is heating up as smaller container ports have been making themselves more attractive as import load centres. A five-year analysis of imports based on data from IHS Markit-owned PIERS reveals that a group of these 'second-tier' ports - Oakland, California; Norfolk, Virginia; Houston, Texas; and Charleston, South Carolina - have had stronger percentage growth than the major container-ship gateways with which they often compete. Houston's Asian imports increased by 148.6% from 2013 to 2017, Charleston was up by 83.6%, and Norfolk was up by 53%. Oakland's Asian imports increased by 12.7%. In comparison, the country's four major load-centre ports, while boasting much larger volumes, are growing more slowly. Los Angeles-Long Beach's Asian imports in 2017 were 12.7% higher than in 2013. New York-New Jersey was up by 24.5%, Savannah was up by 63.5%, and the Northwest Seaport Alliance of Seattle and Tacoma in the state of Washington - having lost cargo share to Canada's Vancouver and Prince Rupert ports-was up by 1.5%.
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