The Port of Long Beach moved 997,177 TEU in September 2026, the busiest month in its 115-year history and 25% above the same month last year. The total edged past the port's previous record of 987,191 TEU, set in October 2024, and the port reported zero congestion while doing it.

Imports drove the surge. Loaded inbound boxes rose 31.3% year-on-year to 509,390 TEU. Exports climbed 7.8% to 91,747 TEU, while empty containers repositioned to Asia jumped 22.1% to 396,040 TEU — meaning roughly four in ten of every container handled last month moved through the port empty, a signal that equipment is flowing back toward origin loadings rather than sitting on the dock.

The record month also pushed the calendar-year figure higher. Through September, Long Beach has handled 7,675,255 TEU, up 3.9% against the same nine months of 2025.

Who claims credit — and for what?

Port CEO Dr Noel Hacegaba attributed the historic result to shippers leaning on Long Beach as a reliable partner in cost-saving strategies. He pointed to three specific pressures behind the cargo shift: high diesel costs, Panama Canal access restrictions, and progress toward a possible new US-China trade deal.

Harbor Commission President Steven Neal credited the dockworkers and terminal operators for delivering the port's busiest month with speed and efficiency.

Both statements deserve scrutiny. A 25% year-on-year jump in a single month rarely reflects steady organic demand; front-loading ahead of anticipated tariff or trade-deal changes, plus diversion from canal-constrained routing, is the more probable mix. The port did not break down how much of the September volume was pulled forward — a gap shippers should weigh before assuming the growth rate holds into the fourth quarter.

What happened on the rails?

Total Terminals International set a new Port of Long Beach monthly rail record in September, handling 59,410 moves — nearly half of the terminal's total container volume for the month. That rail share matters for BCOs and forwarders routing inland via intermodal: it indicates dock-to-ramp capacity absorbed the peak without the backlogs that have historically accompanied record months at San Pedro Bay.

How will the bridge project hit operations?

The harder question is what comes next. Hacegaba announced an extended gate incentive programme to maintain cargo flow during the planned 16-month Vincent Thomas Bridge deck replacement project beginning November 7. That project sits on the main trucking artery for the adjacent Port of Los Angeles complex, and any lane restrictions will land just as the peak season volumes recorded in September work their way through inland supply chains.

Additional evening and Saturday gate hours at Long Beach container terminals will be offered starting in late October, running for six weeks and excluding Thanksgiving week. The programme is a partnership among marine terminal operators, the ILWU and the Harbor Trucking Association, aimed at minimising traffic and cargo impacts during the bridge closure.

The caveat: extended gates only help if truckers actually use them. Similar incentives in past congestion episodes have drawn mixed uptake, with drayage capacity — not gate hours — often the binding constraint. The port offered no volume target for the programme, so its success will be difficult to measure.

What does this mean for shippers?

For importers, the record confirms San Pedro Bay can still absorb surge volume without delay — useful leverage in rate negotiations if trans-Pacific carriers cite congestion risk elsewhere. For carriers, a 31% import jump at one gateway suggests cargo consolidation that may leave smaller Southern California callings thinner. For forwarders, the November 7 bridge start is the date to plan around; truck transits across the terminal corridor will tighten regardless of gate hours.

If the prospective US-China trade framework hardens into a signed deal, Long Beach's fourth-quarter volumes could extend the run — but if September was largely pull-forward cargo, the port may face a softer close to a record year.