Port of L.A. sets U.S. record for shipping export containers The Port of Los Angeles set a new standard for exports in 2011, becoming the first harbor in the nation to ship more than 2 million containers carrying U.S. goods to customers overseas, according to year-end statistics released by port officials. The nation's busiest seaport moved 176,531 export containers in December, enough to kick up its 2011 total to 2.11 million containers. That broke the port's former record of 1.84 million export containers set in 2010. No other U.S. harbor has moved more export containers in one year. The closest competitors are second-ranked Long Beach, which moved 1.69 million export containers in 2008 and third-ranked New York-New Jersey, which moved 1.62 million export containers that same year. "We're fortunate to have stronger year-over-year results in 2011," Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Tuesday in a statement, "but we are not resting on our laurels as the nation's premier trade gateway. The Port of Los Angeles has been encouraging U.S. businesses to export more of their products through its TradeConnect program, which tries to line them up with potential overseas customers. The export record might be difficult to match in 2012, with most maritime trade prognosticators expecting relatively modest growth in world trade over the coming year. London-based Drewry Shipping Consultants is among the most optimistic, predicting a 6.5% gain in global cargo container traffic in 2012. Paris-based AXS Marine expects trade between the Far East and the U.S. to grow 4.6% this year, with Far East to Europe trade growing just 1.5% because of the European debt crisis. Others are expecting moderate growth in U.S. imports from Asia in 2012. "Forecasts indicate that retailers will be stocking up this spring in anticipation of a moderate recovery as the year progresses," said Jonathan Gold, vice president for supply chain and customs policy for the National Retail Federation. Ben Hackett, founder of Hackett Associates, which tracks imports through the nation's busiest ports for the National Retail Federation, said that "indicators suggest that we are not heading for another recession, but rather for a sustained level of low growth."