US waterborne foreign trade rebounds in 2010

According to data reported by the US Census Bureau, double digit growth drove exports to record highs with imports also ending the year on the plus side thanks in part to improvements in the auto, container, petroleum, and steel cargo sectors.

Asia remained America’s leading trading region, with cargo volumes for the year totalling 317.7m tonnes, up 13% from 2009. The figures included double-digit gains in US trade with China, Japan, and South Korea, and more modest but still substantial increases for South Asia (especially India) and the ASEAN bloc.

Within the Western Hemisphere, solid tonnage gains were posted by US trade with Central America, Canada, Mexico, and South America. Cargo tonnage increases of varying degrees also occurred in US trade with Africa, Australasia, the European Union, the Middle East, and the former Soviet Union.