Whisk Logistics Weekly Drayage Roundup — Week of August 17–23, 2026

Ocean rates jumped 9% on both transpacific lanes, Los Angeles posted its second-best July on record, and truck dwell broke a 17-month streak. Six things on our radar.

1. Shanghai–LA up 9%

Drewry's composite World Container Index rose 4% to $4,526 per 40-foot container on August 20th. The transpacific drove all of it: Shanghai–Los Angeles climbed 9% to $6,802 and Shanghai–New York 9% to $9,507. Drewry says demand there "remains resilient." All moves are week over week.

2. Capacity came out of the trade, and it shows

August capacity fell 9% month over month on Asia to US East Coast and 0.4% on Asia to US West Coast, per Drewry's Container Capacity Insight. Seven blank sailings are announced for next week. Drewry expects rates to hold steady on tightened capacity.

Note the asymmetry. The East Coast lane lost 9% of its capacity and moved 9%. The West Coast lane moved the same 9% on capacity that was essentially flat, so something other than supply is doing the work there. Worth calendaring: the Panama Canal surcharges carriers announced for September on Asia to US East Coast and Gulf routings take effect next month, which Drewry notes could add further pressure.

3. Port volume climbing

Los Angeles posted 960,464 TEU in July, its second-busiest July on record and 7.5% above its five-year July average, though down 5.8% against last July's record. Loaded imports were 499,552 TEU, down 8.1% but still 6% above the five-year July average. Exports were 111,776, down 8%, and empties 349,137, down 2%. Through seven months the port is at 6,083,067 TEU, up 1.8%.

Gene Seroka noted that "some cargo that traditionally arrives later in the season has already moved." On the briefing call he gave August guidance: "Based on what we're seeing today, we expect to handle more than 900,000 container units in the month of August."

San Pedro Bay import forecast — Port of LA from Port Optimizer plus Port of Long Beach from CargoNav:

• This week (Aug 16th – 22nd): 217,910 TEU on 41 vessels — LA 120,515 on 23, Long Beach 97,395 on 18
• Next week (Aug 23rd – 29th): 250,233 TEU on 44 vessels — LA 152,388 on 25, Long Beach 97,845 on 19
• Two weeks out (Aug 30th – Sep 5th): 230,750 TEU on 41 vessels — LA 133,355 on 23, Long Beach 97,395 on 18

On the LA side alone, next week is up 26.5% on the week and 32.1% year over year.

One note on the Long Beach figures. They have not moved in eight days, and CargoNav publishes only two distinct values across the next seven weeks. Read that line as a planning baseline, not a live forecast.

No vessel queue and 12 ships at berth. Port Optimizer's August panel puts full-day truck turn time at 59 minutes at the Port of Los Angeles and 58 at the Port of Long Beach. Both were 57 a week ago, so the complex is running slightly slower as volume builds.

4. Terminal weekend coverage

For the weekend of August 22nd – 23rd, read from each terminal's website this morning:

• Saturday 1st shift is open at APM, ETS, TraPac, LBCT, ITS and TTI.
• Saturday 2nd shift is APM only.
• Sunday 1st shift narrows to TraPac and LBCT. TraPac runs automation only, with no appointment required for import picks and empty drops.
• Sunday 2nd shift is APM only.

Six gates Saturday morning is the widest weekend coverage we have posted this month. Note APM is closed Sunday 1st shift while open Sunday 2nd.

5. Truck dwell broke three days

The Pacific Merchant Shipping Association reported on August 20th that local truck-destined dwell in San Pedro Bay averaged 3.03 days in July, up from 2.89 days in June. PMSA's June report had counted 17 consecutive months of truck dwell below three days. July ends that run.

Rail-destined dwell rose harder, to 6.34 days from 5.43 in June.

Three days is not congestion. But the direction matters, because it lands in the same month Los Angeles moved 960,464 TEU and ahead of a week the bay expects a quarter-million TEU. Free time assumptions built on a 2.89-day average have less room in them than they did in June.

6. Diesel jumped back up

On-highway diesel per gallon, per EIA's August 17th print:

• U.S. national — $5.454 this week, $5.257 last week, $5.134 a month ago
• California — $6.785 this week, $6.618 last week, $6.471 a month ago

National rose 19.7 cents on the week, or 3.7%, and California 16.7 cents, or 2.5%. Last week's decline turned out to be a one-week dip rather than a turn, and both series are now at their highest of the month. Over four weeks national is up 32.0 cents, or 6.2%, and California 31.4 cents, or 4.9%. California's premium sits at $1.331, against $1.361 last week.

In closing....

Tightness is returning on every axis we follow. Carriers pulled 9% of East Coast capacity in a month and got a 9% rate move for it. The West Coast got the same 9% on capacity that barely moved — that one is demand, not supply, and the Panama surcharges landing in September are part of why. Los Angeles nearly matched a million TEU again and expects a bigger week next. Truck dwell ended a 17-month run under three days, and diesel gave back last week's relief and then some. None of it is disruption. All of it is a market with less slack than four weeks ago.

That's the week. See you next Friday.

— Whisk Logistics

Questions on how this hits your lanes? Send us a DM on LinkedIn or email contactus@whisklogistics.com.