In a press release Tuesday, Journal of Commerce and PIERS economist Mario O. Moreno said that US imports measured by shipping volume grew by 7.2 percent over the first five months of 2011 over the same period a year ago. Growth slowed in May, however, as economic expansion weakened. Just in May, imports rose 6 percent year-on-year to 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs).
Imports of auto parts jumped 29 percent year-on-year to 53,574 TEUs. Shipments from Japan contributed strongly to the gain as factories rushed to make up for time lost following the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. Japanese imports rose by 17 percent to 50,422 TEUs in May.