U.S. imports of containerized goods rose the most in six months in November as a recovering housing market bolstered consumer demand, according to The Journal of Commerce/PIERS, which tracks volumes through ports.
Seaborne imports advanced 5 percent from a year earlier to 1.49 million 20-foot boxes, the biggest jump since May, the Newark, New Jersey-based company said. Shipments of furniture, which account for about 10 percent of the total, gained 7 percent.
Existing home sales rose 4 percent to 4.42 million units in November, while purchases of new single-family houses gained for a third consecutive month, according to data from the National Association of Realtors and the Census Bureau.
"A healthy housing market is key to the revival of U.S. containerized imports growth," Mario Moreno, a PIERS economist, wrote in the statement. "The question is: are we seeing a self- sustained recovery in home sales? We are not there yet, but getting closer."
