August should be the busiest month of the year for import cargo volume at the nation's major retail container ports now that retailers have stocked up for back-to-school and are getting a head start on holiday season merchandise. That's according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates, which said cargo volume for 2016 should end the year with a 1.6 percent increase over last year.

Dozens of port authorities and marine terminals received port security grants this summer from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), but millions of dollars from the $100m program went to local law enforcement agencies and other non-port entities.

Softening demand growth coupled with larger liner shipping alliances and bigger ships is moving the container ports industry towards a value sector from growth sector, albeit still highly profitable, according to the Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review and Forecast 2016 report published by global shipping consultancy Drewry.

The Association of Bulk Terminal Operators (ABTO) has been established to provide a voice for bulk terminal operators at a national and international level.

Import cargo volume at the nation's major retail container ports should see a small-but-significant increase this month as merchants stock up for the back-to-school season, then see a larger wave in late summer and fall for the holiday shopping season, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

The new set of locks at the Panama Canal is open for business. How will it affect North American shipping patterns?

The Panama Canal accounts for roughly five percent of world sea trade, and the expanded Panama Canal is estimated to generate a three percent increase in cargo volumes transiting the canal.