West Coast ports to reopen after weekend shutdown
Source: USA Today
Chris Woodyard
LOS ANGELES — West Coast ports were expected to reopen to shipping Monday after a weekend shutdown that heightened labor tensions and hinted at the ongoing dispute's potential to sap billions of dollars from the U.S. economy.
At the normally busy Port of Los Angeles, cranes sat idly perched over ships stacked high with containers during the weekend while other loaded vessels bobbed at anchor offshore. The terminal operators' decision to shut down ship movements at 29 West Coast ports affected not only goods such as cars, clothing, building materials and electronics from Asia, but also American agricultural exports.
Even before the weekend, the Pacific Maritime Association, representing port terminal operators, said that a 14-week dockworker slowdown had choked cargo and ship movements. Though ship movements were at a standstill, the association said Sunday that yards in the five busiest ports — Seattle, Tacoma, Oakland, Los Angeles and Long Beach — were busy moving cargo off the docks.
A full-blown port shutdown could cost the U.S. economy some $2 billion a day, the National Retail Federation has warned. Unlike some past labor disputes involving the ports, the latest escalation at least comes at a time when the holiday season has passed and many retailers aren't as in dire need of shipments of merchandise.
FULL story at link.
Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2015/02/08/west-coast-ports-closure/23086097/
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