Major U.S. retail container ports are expected to handle 1.6 million TEUs in December, according to the NRF’s monthly Global Port Tracker report. A TEU is a 20-foot-long cargo container or its equivalent.

“Retailers are doing last-minute restocking as consumers head toward the finish line of the shopping season,” Jonathan Gold, NRF’s vice president for supply chain and customs policy, said.

More than 174 million U.S. shoppers made purchases over the Thanksgiving weekend and Cyber Monday, the NRF said, beating the industry group’s expectations and signaling a strong start to the holiday quarter.

“With tax cuts that will leave more money in shoppers’ pockets in the headlines and consumer confidence high, all signs are that this has been a strong holiday season,” Gold said.

Most retailers, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Macy’s Inc, headed into the holiday season with leaner inventories than previous years as they try to reduce the risk of ending the holidays with huge amounts of leftover inventory.

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