New agreement for Port of Houston increases South American trade routes

The port of Houston recently announced plans to begin a South American service agreement with NYK Line, a Japanese-based shipping company. NYK is one of the largest shipping and logistics companies.

According to the Port of Houston Authority, the Port of Houston is ranked the number 1 US port in terms of foreign tonnage and the number 2 US port for total tonnage. It’s also the largest port in Texas, and in 2012 was the largest Texas container port. The new arrangement could be a factor in even further positioning Houston for success among other top US ports.  Looking into NYK logistics in the Import Genius database, we found over 18,400 shipments on record in 2012. Import Genius’ visual mapping tool detailing the supply chain shows that NYK works with many major US retailers and brand names such as Michael Kors, JCPenney, Kohl’s, Rite Aid, Big Lots, and CVS Pharmacy.  This service is slated to begin in late July. The new route calls for stops at ports in Ecuador, Chile, Peru and Panama. On average, about 5400 shipments into Houston came from these South American countries in 2010 and 2011, but numbers slightly declined by about 700 shipments in 2012. Just over 4700 shipments into Houston came from either Ecuador, Chile, Peru and Panama last year. In addition, numbers for the first half of this year are down compared to the first six months of 2012. The new service will certainly boost activity between Houston and these South American regions and propel Houston’s trade activity with South America.  This is one of many new agreements recently announced for the Port of Houston. In May, the port agreed to new shipping arrangements adding service to Puerto Rico and locations throughout the Middle East. Service to South America also made news in April when the Mediterranean Shipping Co. started a weekly service between Houston and Brazil.  Source:

Onward to South America: Port of Houston facilitates more shipping routes