Containerized Freight Statistics

The Federal Maritime Commission is required to publish a quarterly report describing the total import and export tonnage and total laden and empty 20-foot equivalent units loaded or discharged by ocean common carriers at U.S. ports. (46 U.S. Code § 41110)

The Commission has identified 32 ocean common carriers that are required to provide data. These carriers are responsible for transporting 98 percent of containerized freight moving in international commerce to and from the U.S.

Responding carriers are required to provide:

• The total import and export cargo tonnage and the total number of containers loaded or discharged per vessel at each U.S. port.
• Information for all container moves at ports in the U.S. (including U.S. territories and or possessions) on a per-port call basis.
• Optionally, information on container moves at Mexican and Canadian ports that handle significant numbers of containers destined for or originating from the United States.

Carriers are expected to provide information for all wholly-owned subsidiaries, including U.S. flag operators.

The Commission is collecting this information from the 30 identified ocean common carriers, beginning with January 2024 data which is due to the Commission on April 1, 2024. Reports will be available beginning in Summer 2024. This information is collected under OMB Control Number 3072-0074.

List of Reporting Ocean Common Carriers