[120917.EN.BIZ] Bayonne Bridge Raising 'Risks West-to-East Cargo Shift'

THE raising of the New York-New Jersey Bayonne Bridge marks the removal of the last major obstacle in the transfer of substantially more market share from west to east coast ports, say experts.

As the 14,400-TEU CMA CGM Theodore Roosevelt glided under the newly elevated Bayonne Bridge to Elizabeth, New Jersey, completing a maiden voyage from Shanghai via Panama Canal, it became the biggest ship to ever dock at the east coast port, reported London's Financial Times.

The widening of the Panama Canal could shift as much as 10 per cent of east Asia-origin container imports to the US east coast from the west coast by 2020, says Boston Consulting Group and major forwarder CH Robinson.

At issue are vast tracts of consumers hundreds of miles to the west of the east coast in Columbus, Ohio and Memphis, Tennessee.

"The catchment area between the Appalachian mountains and the Mississippi river is now competitive for different port options, said Dustin Burke of Boston Consulting.

Companies in Ohio and Tennessee may now find it cheaper to bring Asian imports through Atlantic ports than have them trucked or railed from Pacific ports.

Portions of the US Midwest are a "battleground" for ports on either coast, said Bethann Rooney, an assistant commercial director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Source : HKSG.