Compared to the same period of the previous year, the export volume decreased by 14% in the first half of the year
Vancouver’s Fraser Port Authority says container shipments are falling because consumer demand is slowing amid a weak economy.
Compared to the same six-month period in 2022, container shipment volume at the Port of Vancouver fell 14 per cent in the first half of the year, the authority says.
Interim CEO Victor Pang said the figures reflected a softer economy, which contracted slightly in the second quarter.
Movement of construction materials and auto parts also fell, while exports of finished vehicles rose as supply chain kinks smoothed out.
Grain exports marked the biggest bright spot, rising more than 100 percent, driven in part by record volumes sent to Africa amid a surge in demand brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
However, Pang says a two-week strike by BC port workers in July took a toll on operations.
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