Supply Chains in SF Bay Area Lift All Boats During Pandemic

While much of California has been reeling from the current pandemic, the San Francisco Bay Area remains something of an exception due to good governance and responsible citizens.

The latest good news story to emerge from this episode has been reflected in cargo throughput at the Port of Oakland, which experienced its best September ever for import cargo volume.

The port said 93,916 twenty-foot (TEU) full import containers last month beat a 2019 record of 84,901 TEUs. The port also said today that containerized import volume jumped 10.6 percent in September compared to 2019 totals. Exports were also up 5 percent compared to September 2019.

Total TEUs for September were 225,809 up 9.3 percent compared to September 2019 when TEUs were 206,539.

The port attributed the boost in imports to U.S. retailers stocking up in preparation for the traditional holiday shopping season. Consumer products combined with pandemic-related items such as personal protective supplies helped make September a record-breaking month.
“Several months into this pandemic, we are now seeing positive signs by these cargo volume totals,” said Port of Oakland Maritime Director Bryan Brandes. “As retailers make sure shelves are well-stocked, we’re waiting to see if consumers begin shopping early this holiday season.”

The port said it’s seeing retailers hedging against another possible COVID wave this winter. Retailers appear to be building up their stocks as they continue to see the spread of more factory closures and lockdowns.

Compared to last year, this year’s first nine months show full imports up 0.4 percent and full exports down 0.2 percent.

Further evidence of Oakland’s resiliency was made clear when Fitch Ratings recently assigned an “A+” rating to the port’s approximately $346.8 million in Senior Lien Revenue Refunding Bonds and an “A” rating to the $187.5 million in Intermediate Lien Revenue Refunding Bonds.

In addition, Fitch Ratings has affirmed the outstanding senior bonds at “A+” and affirmed the outstanding Intermediate Lien and underlying bank bonds for the port’s commercial paper notes at “A.”

“The port benefitted from a sound financial position heading into the coronavirus pandemic, and leverage is expected to remain manageable through 2025,” concluded Fitch analysts.

Meanwhile, as COVID-19 cases are spiking in some parts of the country, Bay Area cities are doing better so far, with San Francisco having the lowest death rate and some of the lowest case rates anywhere in the nation.

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