Container Depot Market in North America - Growth, Trends, and Forecast (2018 - 2023)

Increase in Container Traffic due to Growing Trade in the North American Region

International trade has a huge impact on the economic growth of countries in the North American region. The ports of North America play a vital role in the overall trade system, as billions of tons of cargo pass through the ports every year via ships, trains, and trucks. Since 1990, container traffic through North American ports had increased annually at an average rate of 5.3% and since 2010 overall container traffic increased by 26% annually. This growth in container volume passing through ports can be a huge issue. In 2015, there were several congestion issues on the US West Coast ports, which has been a strain on port efficiency and labor. In the United States, the Port of Los Angeles is the largest port in terms of TEU volume throughput. It handles more than 150 million tons of cargo each year, more than any other port in North America. Some of the top import items are furniture, food and perishables, consumer goods, and raw materials and the top export items are paper goods, food, and chemicals.

Container Trade and Depot Demand being driven by Increasing Trading with South Asia
Container trade volumes and depot demand are directly related to the overall volume of traded goods. This is specifically the case for cargo imported into North America. The containerized export sector is driven by the pace of demand for primary goods in major trading markets, such as South Asian and European markets. The total North American container depot demand increased by over 200 % between 1990 and 2007 to reach 50 million TEU, growing at 6.8 % per annum. The demand fell in 2009 to about 40.2 million TEU, but a strong recovery saw the demand rise to almost 55.8 million TEU at the end of 2015. Between the USA and Canada, the ports of Los Angeles and Vancouver in the Pacific Northwest region saw consistent distribution volumes.

The economic growth has increased the amount of trade taking place between and around the North American region due to which the demand for container depots has been increasing. Apart from these, other drivers for the container depot market include containerization of general cargoes, which had more or less reached a saturation level, and an imbalance of loaded inbound to outbound containers ratio between the North American region and the South East and Far East regions of Asia, due to which shippers are increasingly searching for more cargo on return journeys to Asia. Hence there has been increasing use of containers in the sectors, which were previously regarded as suitable for containerization, such as forest products, iron and steel scrap, and waste papers. To accommodate for the increasing containers, the ports are getting bigger in the area.

The inclusion of empty containers (which do not represent cargo actually being traded), whose proportion with respect to containers with cargo has been increasing in the region. Containerization generates considerable trade, by making it easy to store in a depot or transport goods reasonably over large distances. Another factor that has been essential in the demand for container depots is the rapid increase in volume of containerized cargo when compared to its real value, due to factors, such as the fall in price of electronic and consumer goods, volatility in the need to consume or save the containerized goods, to import or purchase goods domestically, to export or sell domestically, and fluctuations in prices, incomes, exchange rates, tastes, and confidence.

The growing capacity of shipping vessels to transport cargo is also seen as a factor in helping the market growth. For example, in May 2017, the Port of Savannah handled more than 5,500 containers which crossed the docks from a single vessel, the COSCO Development, which was a record for Georgia’s ports. The 13,000-TEU vessel is held to be representative of the future of shipping, which is part of a growing trend in the ocean carrier business, which is moving toward larger and more efficient vessels. During the ship’s 30 hours at the dock, up to six cranes moved 10,000 TEUs of containers into storage and transit. Similar growth is being seen at the Port of Brunswick, at Colonel’s Island, 214 acres are being added for increased container storage and processing space, bringing it to a total of 546 acres.

North America Container Depot Market Key Players
Hutchinson Port Holdings
Ports America Inc.
SSA Terminals
ysen Terminals
CMA CGM
APM Terminals
American President Lines
Global Terminals Canada
Container Depot Market in North America Recent Developments
Dec 2017: CMA CGM Sells Stake in Major North American Terminal

Reasons to Purchase North America Container Depot Market Report
Current and future North America Container Depot market outlook.
Analyzing various perspectives of the market with the help of Porter’s five forces analysis
The segment that is expected to dominate the market
Regions that are expected to witness fastest growth during the forecast period
Identify the latest developments, market shares, and strategies employed by the major market players.
3 months analyst support along with the Market Estimate sheet (in Excel).
North America Container Depot Market Report Customization and Benefits
This report can be customized to meet the desired requirements. Please connect with our analyst, who will ensure that you get a report that suits your needs.

This product will be delivered within 2 business days.