Port experiences growth spurt
Buoyed by trade with Germany, Charleston district grew 15% in '07
Trade through the Charleston U.S. Customs district topped the $50 billion mark last year for the first time, boosted by a surge in exports to the state's No. 1 trading partner, Germany.
Shipments to and from the European economic powerhouse totaled $16.2 billion in 2007, $12 billion more than Charleston's second- and third-place trade partners, the United Kingdom and China.
Driving that surge was a 60 percent increase in exports to Germany to a total of $4.5 billion, up from $2.8 billion in 2006.
U.S. Census Bureau data, compiled by Miami-based trade analysts WorldCity, shows that Charleston ranks 16th in the nation based on the combined value of imports and exports. Most of those shipments came through the Port of Charleston.
The Holy City handled $56.8 billion worth of goods in 2007 based on import and export customs declarations. That's 15.4 percent more than in 2006, and enough to make Charleston the fastest-growing among the 25 largest customs districts.
The leading customs sector was Los Angeles, which handled almost $350 billion worth of goods, followed by New York at nearly $324 billion.
Charleston's major seaport competitors, Savannah and Norfolk, Va., ranked 10th and 19th, respectively.
The increase in Charleston came in a year when the port's containerized business fell 11 percent. For the first six months of the State Ports Authority's fiscal year, which ended Dec. 31, container volume was down 13.2 percent.
The WorldCity data was not verified by the ports authority.
But the SPA's breakbulk business — cargo too large or cumbersome to fit into standard-size containers, such as vehicles and gravel — increased 18 percent in 2007.
SPA spokesman Byron Miller said the data show the array of commodities that move through the port and the financial value of those goods.
While Charleston often is thought of as a container port, there is much more to trade in South Carolina than multi-colored steel boxes, Miller said.
For example, German car manufacturer BMW exported nearly 100,000 vehicles through Charleston last year. The company also is a major importer of automotive parts and completed vehicles, such as its Mini Cooper brand.
And the state is a base for other leading German companies, such as the Robert Bosch Corp. automotive plant in Charleston and Daimler AG's Sprinter van assembly plant in North Charleston.
"It's a reflection of the diverse trade in South Carolina," Miller said.
The value of the state's combined imports and exports has increased 91 percent since 2002, according to the WorldCity data.
South Carolina's top imported and exported commodity, to Germany and worldwide, is motor passenger vehicles, said Ken Roberts, WorldCity president and chief executive.
Other leading goods include motor vehicle parts and jet and engine parts.
Doug Woodward, a professor and research director at the University of South Carolina's Moore School of Business, said the Palmetto State's economy has become more globalized during the last two decades.
Many overseas companies are benefiting from the strength of foreign currencies over the U.S. dollar, particularly the euro, he said, which has allowed them to weather the storm of the current economic slowdown.
Meanwhile, the state's exports are growing more diverse, Woodward said.
Pushed to find new trading partners as the state's storied textile industry began to fall apart at the seams, the economy from the Upstate to the Midlands and the coast reaped rewards by attracting overseas-based manufacturers.
And South Carolina's geographical position as a coastal state has paid huge dividends.
"I don't think some of these German manufacturers would be here if it wasn't for the port," Woodward said. "We have a huge competitive advantage being on the coast."
Trading places
Leading U.S. trade gateways
Rank Customs sector Value of imports/ Value
exports in 2007 in 2006
1 Los Angeles $349 billion $329 billion
2 New York $323 billion $294 billion
3 Detroit $247 billion $239 billion
10 Savannah/Atlanta $93 billion $82 billion
16 Charleston $56 billion $49 billion
19 Norfolk, Va. $50 billion $44 billion
CHARLESTON's top trading partners
Rank Country Value of imports/ Value
exports in 2007 in 2006
1 Germany $16.2 billion $11.8 billion
2 United Kingdom $4.06 billion $3.3 billion
3 China $4.01 billion $3.6 billion
4 France $2.6 billion $1.9 billion
5 India $1.99 billion $2.1 billion
Quick facts
--Saudi Arabia is Charleston's fastest-growing trade partner.
--Fourteen nations do more than $1 billion in two-way trade with Charleston.
