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Zepol reports drop in November imports

Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, December 22, 2011

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Trade intelligence firm Zepol Corp. said that U.S. import shipments fell in November, activity that represented the lowest import volume in four months.

It said shipment volume measured in TEUs, or twenty-foot container equivalents, fell 2.12% from October and rose .17% from November of 2010. The total number of November inbound shipments fell 1.73% from October and rose .27% from November 2010.

Year to date, TEU shipments are up 1%, Zepol reported.

Its November analysis also found that:

• Imports from China decreased for the third consecutive month in November, while imports from Indonesia increased for the second consecutive month. TEU imports from Europe decreased over 3% from October to November, mostly due to lower imports from Germany, Belgium, and Spain. South America posted an increase in TEUs of nearly 4% from October. A big contributor to the increase was Brazil, whose shipments rose 8%.

• Imports into the Port of Los Angeles fell more than 6% while imports into the Port of Long Beach increased more than 14% from October. Of the top 10 U.S. ports for November, four posted increases from October.

• Maersk Line, the number one master carrier, saw a 5% drop in inbound TEU imports from October to November, after posting a 13% jump in the previous month. Mediterranean Shipping Company, ranked second, saw imports rise for the third consecutive month.

The report is based on shipments of a wide variety of consumer goods including indoor residential furniture and other home furnishings.

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