USEFUL TOOLS/LINKS
Q4 2017 Industrial Knowledge Report
Colliers Logistics & Transportation 2017 Midyear Big-Box Review and Outlook
Colliers Industrial U.S. Seaport Outlook
U.S. seaports help deliver vital goods to consumers, ship exports overseas and support millions of jobs. In fact, seaports are a vital economic engine for the U.S., and the nation’s import and export volumes are one of the top demand drivers for industrial real estate.
Over the past few years, U.S. ports have undergone significant change as the global shipping industry has rapidly evolved. To get products to consumers quicker and more efficiently, ship sizes are growing at a faster rate than ever before. These shifts have put ports in catch-up mode, with capital improvement projects underway or recently completed at nearly all locations to better service larger vessels. While West Coast ports are naturally better suited for this trend thanks to deeper harbors, the recent expansion of the Panama Canal has created an opportunity for more cargo to shift to ports along the East Coast and the Gulf Coast.
As we look ahead, a thriving U.S. economy should keep import volumes booming on both coasts in the short term. However, exports could be impacted by a strong U.S. dollar, and it remains to be seen how possible shifts in U.S. trade policy could affect imports in the long term. While the long-term effects of the Panama Canal expansion on East Coast/West Coast port market share won’t be seen until improvements are completed along East Coast ports, a major trend to watch in the coming year will be the effects of new shipping alliances on global trade and the ports themselves.
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