Top 5 U.S. Ports by Import Cargo Volume

Here at TRG we do business with companies of all sizes that import a diverse array of commodities. They import everything from iPhones to crude oil. In order to move these goods, these companies utilize the services of massive cargo ships. These massive cargo ships are loaded with goods, that range in the tens of thousands of tons, and are shipped across an ocean to arrive at a U.S. port.

Which caused me to wonder the follow question, which of all the U.S. ports handles the most foreign imports? As a result of this pondering, I have listed below the top five ports that foreign goods enter the U.S.

1. Port of Houston – 97.7 million tons annually
   Houston, TX is the fourth largest city in the U.S, it is also the biggest city in Texas. Its existence was the result of new need created by the devastation of a hurricane coupled with the discovery of oil, as well as the help of the community to rally for a deep water port.
2. Port of New York and New Jersey Port Newark – 70.7 million tons annually
   This port handled $208 billion in shipping cargo in 2011. Approximately 3,200,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of containers and 700,000 automobiles are handled per year here. Also of notoriety is that there are over thirty lighthouses at this port, granted some of these have been decommissioned and serve simply as tourist attractions.
3. Port of Beaumont, Texas – 65.3 million tons annually
   This Port offers 600,000 square feet of covered storage, bulk cargo terminals and 80 acres of open storage. Three major rail carriers, five major roadways, the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and global steamship lines feed into the Port of Beaumont. The port offers a 3.5 million bushel grain elevator capable of loading 80,000 bushels per hour. The U.S. military recognizes the Port of Beaumont as the busiest military port in the world.
4. Port of Texas City, Texas – 46.3 million tons annually
   The port of Texas City is quite famous for an industrial disaster that happened in 1947. The disaster was a result of an explosion aboard one of the ships in the port, which quickly spread fires to nearby boats and factories. The following inferno eventually consumed much of the port and is considered one of the worst industrial disasters in U.S. history.
5. Port of Corpus Christi, Texas – 44.9 million tons annually
   The city of Corpus Christi is most famous as a popular tourist destination, however, the port itself is quite noteworthy as it tops off the list at number five. It is also home to the retired World War II aircraft carrier, the USS Lexington, which has been recommissioned as a floating museum.