That was the huge drop in import containers arriving at the sister ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in October versus the same month a year ago, the ports reported this week. It was also the lowest volume of goods coming into the ports since May 2020. What’s going on? It’s the threat of a work stoppage of some type at the ports, says at least one port official, with the dock union working off a contract that expired June 30th, and negotiations with the ports and terminals seeming to be going nowhere. Gene Seroka, the executive director of the Port of LA, said that the biggest factor in the cargo declines, which began in August, is that importers are moving more of their goods to East Coast and Gulf Coast ports “due to protracted labor negotiations.” Seroka said cargo volumes are also falling because of a decline in consumer spending on household goods such as furniture and appliances. Overall US container volumes fell 13% in October.