Increased throughput at the Port of Houston – including steel cargo – means increased capacity is necessary, according to Port Commission chairman Ric Campo.

“The port is open for business, and it is going to be fair to everyone,” he says in his monthly report. “Fundamentally, we need a wider and deeper channel.”

Much of the 9% on-year throughput increase has come from resin and polyethylene exports, which have risen 38% and 62% from last year, Kallanish understands.

Steel imports, however, are up 31% on-year, and containerised cargo traffic is up 13%.