Port Houston lifts August container volumes 1% as steel imports jump 54%
Port Houston’s public terminals handled 373,756 twenty-foot equivalent units in August, a 1% increase from the same month last year. Steel imports reached 502,965 tons in August, up 54% from a year earlier.
Loaded imports totaled 176,016 TEUs in August, a 4% rise from a year earlier, while loaded exports fell 2% to 136,070 TEUs, with machinery, electronics, retail consumer goods, furniture, automotive products, and apparel cited as import commodities and seasonal front‑loading noted as a contributing factor. Through August 2026, Port Houston’s container volumes totaled 2.97 million TEUs, up 1% year over year, with loaded imports up 5% to 1.39 million TEUs, loaded exports down 1% to 1.06 million TEUs, and overall loaded container activity up 2% to 2.45 million TEUs. Vessel activity on the Houston Ship Channel increased in August, with deep‑draft transits rising 9% to 1,607 and barge transits up 10% to 19,712, both measures up 7% year to date. Port Houston approved design work for a refrigerated container yard at Bayport Container Yard 9 to hold over 1,800 units, completed 10 FTZ site authorizations matching its 2024 record with 11 under review, and welcomed the first vessel of Crowley Maritime’s Houston‑Central America service.
Although August steel imports jumped 54% year over year, year‑to‑date steel tonnage through August was down 10% to about 2.87 million tons, with imports down 11% to roughly 2.71 million tons. General cargo fell 26% in August to 116,881 tons but remained up 22% year to date at 913,863 tons, including a 27% rise in imports.
What we know
The port’s public terminals handled 373,756 twenty-foot equivalent units in August, a 1% increase from 370,430 TEUs during the same month last year.
Steel imports reached 502,965 tons, a 54% increase from 327,258 tons in August 2025.
Through the first eight months of 2026, container volumes totaled nearly 2.97 million TEUs, also up 1% year over year.
Loaded imports totaled 176,016 TEUs during August, increasing 4% from 169,631 TEUs a year earlier.
Deep-draft transits rose 9% year over year to 1,607, while barge transits increased 10% to 19,712.