Hawaii interisland shipping is slowly emerging from the doldrums, with Young Brothers sending more cargo to neighbor island ports in the third quarter.
Young Brothers’ cargo shipments to Kawaihae increased 6.5 percent and from Kawaihae increased 4.9 percent during the third quarter. Shipments to Hilo climbed 3.7 percent and shipments from Hilo climbed 5.1 percent.
In all, intrastate cargo shipments between Honolulu and six neighbor island ports increased 5.2 percent from July through September of 2013 when compared to the same period of 2012, Young Brothers announced Friday.
“We believe this is another indicator that the broader local economy is continuing to gain strength, and we’re hopeful it’s the beginning of a trend that will sustain itself,” Glenn Hong, president of Young Brothers, said in a statement. “We still have some ground to make up to get back to levels seen six and seven years ago.”
When compared to the peak-volume year of 2007, Young Brothers’ 2013 volume is still down approximately 20 percent.
Vice President, Strategic Planning and Government Relations Roy Catalani has said it is difficult to say exactly what percentage of the interisland shipping market Young Brothers has compared with larger carriers, such as Matson. But Young Brothers is the largest carrier operating solely between the Hawaiian Islands, and even picks up some Matson cargo on occasion, Catalani said.
During the third quarter of 2013, every neighbor island port increased cargo shipments: Kahului, Maui, the largest single port in terms of volume, rose 5.5 percent; Hilo climbed 4.2 percent; Kawaihae, up 6.0 percent; Nawiliwili, Kauai, up 5.3 percent; Kaunakakai, Molokai, 4.9 percent; and Kaumalapau, Lanai, the smallest port in terms of volume, up 21.6 percent.
Most industry segments finished the quarter with positive comparisons. Shipments of construction materials and renewable energy, namely biofuels, were up strongly, continuing the trend of the previous quarter. Other significant gainers included automobile rental fleets, beverages and the entertainment industry, which includes tourism-related shippers, Young Brothers said in the report.
Agricultural exports from the Big Island are up as well.
Four of six ports experienced an increase in agricultural cargo exports during the third quarter 2013: Kawaihae, up 11.8 percent; Nawiliwili, up 7.9 percent; Hilo, 7.2 percent; and Honolulu, 6.4 percent. Agricultural cargo from Kahului was flat at 0.1 percent, while agricultural exports from Kaunakakai fell 7 percent compared to the year-ago quarter.
According to the Young Brothers Quarterly Report, overall volume for the first nine months of the year is up 1.8 percent, compared to the first nine months of 2012.
“After six months, volume was basically flat, but the strong quarter moved our year-to-date results into positive territory. It’s good to have this momentum going into the fourth quarter,” Hong said.
All but one of the neighbor island ports experienced an increase in volume for the first nine months of the year. Kahului inched up 1 percent; Hilo, up 1.7 percent; Nawiliwili, up 5.4 percent; Kaunakakai, 5.7 percent; and Kaumalapau, 20.5 percent. Volume at Kawaihae, down slightly for the year, fell 3.4 percent.
In the third quarter of 2013, agricultural cargo volume statewide increased by 5.3 percent over last year’s quarter, continuing a trend of positive quarterly comparisons, albeit at a more moderate pace. Young Brothers announced an 11.1-percent increase in the second quarter of 2013 and a modest uptick of 1.2 percent in the first quarter. For the first nine months of 2013 agricultural volume rose 5.8 percent.
Agricultural volume includes only cargo that qualifies for the company’s island product discount of 30 to 35 percent, which applies to locally grown agricultural products.
Young Brothers’ quarterly intrastate shipping volumes reflect only cargo shipments that originate and terminate within Hawaii. Young Brothers, with approximately 340 employees across the state, has served Hawaii since 1900. Young Brothers is a publicly regulated water carrier providing 12 weekly port calls from Honolulu to the state’s neighbor island ports, including Hilo, Kawaihae, Kahului, Kaumalapau, Kaunakakai and Nawiliwili.
