SIMIC

Backups of dozens of container ships have formed off ports in New York, Houston and Savannah, Georgia, authorities said, even as the lineup of vessels waiting to get into the neighbouring ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach has dwindled from an armada that once counted more than 100 ships.

The queue at the Port of New York and New Jersey, the largest gateway on the East Coast, has reached about 20 vessels, while about 40 container ships were waiting recently off the coast's second-largest gateway at the Port of Savannah.

Port Houston, a growing destination for ships from Asia travelling through the Panama Canal, counted a backup of 25 container ships last week, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Industry executives and port officials said a surge in inbound cargo in recent months has swamped landside operations, straining storage capacity and the availability of container-handling equipment while slowing the ability of dockworkers and trucking companies to handle shipments.

"It's a horror show," said Lori Fellmer, chair of the ocean committee for the National Industrial Transportation League, which represents companies that ship commodities.

She said some container terminals are so crowded with boxes that truckers can't get access to shipments and ocean carriers are charging shippers late fees for failing to pick up loaded containers and return empty boxes quickly enough.

The new backups come as supply-chain congestion is growing again at ports around the world, worsening strains on global trade.

Shipping-industry officials said they are trying to ease the bottlenecks. Officials at the Port of New York and New Jersey set up a temporary storage area for 110,000 empty containers. They are also considering charging ocean carriers for empty containers that spend too long at the port, but fee likely wouldn't be effective until October.

Federal Maritime Commission Chairman Daniel Maffei said the solution to the bottlenecks is an increase in warehouse space and trucking capacity as well as reduced import volumes.

Shipping officials said a slowdown in cargoes may be on the horizon.