Port Houston Container Volumes Jump 11 Percent in September as Imports Surge and Steel Imports Nearly Triple

Port Houston recorded an 11 percent year-over-year increase in container volumes in September, fueled by stronger imports and improving export activity through its Bayport and Barbours Cut container terminals, FreightWaves reported Wednesday from figures presented at the October 21 Port Commission meeting. The port handled 376,419 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) during the month, compared with 337,659 TEUs in September 2025. Through the first nine months of 2026, Port Houston handled 3.35 million TEUs, up 2 percent from 3.27 million in the same period last year.

The import side did the heavy lifting. Loaded container imports rose 16 percent year over year in September to 174,189 TEUs, while loaded exports increased 2 percent to 132,009 TEUs, and empty container exports rose 31 percent to 55,963 TEUs as carriers repositioned equipment. 'We had a pretty rough start to the year,' Port Houston CEO Charlie Jenkins told commissioners, adding that recent cargo activity had improved the port's outlook heading into the final quarter. Chief Operations Officer Ryan Mariacher said the month's growth at Bayport and Barbours Cut was largely driven by imports, and that the second half of September and the first half of October brought a long-anticipated surge in export volumes that carriers and shippers expect to continue.

Houston is outpacing the country. Chief Commercial Officer John Mosley said import demand stayed unusually strong through the third quarter, the traditional peak shipping season, and cited National Retail Federation Port Tracker data showing Houston among the strongest-performing major U.S. container gateways for import growth: loaded imports through Port Houston are up 6 percent year to date, to 1.56 million TEUs from 1.47 million, against a much weaker national import market. The port launched a new container and refrigerated cargo service in September and is negotiating additional services, officials said.

The rest of the September ledger ran hot too. Public-terminal vessel movements rose 10 percent to 750, barge movements jumped 23 percent to 181, and total revenue tonnage increased 15 percent to 4.88 million tons. Steel imports totaled 539,993 tons, up 181 percent from 192,351 tons a year earlier; combined steel imports and exports exceeded 581,000 tons, the port's strongest monthly steel performance since May 2022, and its first consecutive months above 500,000 tons of steel in more than a decade. Officials also highlighted the completed Port Houston-led portions of Project 11, which widened a section of the Houston Ship Channel through Galveston Bay from 530 feet to 700 feet, and planning for Project 12, the next expansion.